


boy, this love is supernatural

by vatonages



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, M/M, Slow Burn, Vampires, psychic hoseok, some of them have special powers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-26
Updated: 2017-11-18
Packaged: 2019-01-23 09:26:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 20,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12504264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vatonages/pseuds/vatonages
Summary: vampire au. Hyungwon knocked back a second drink, wiped the back of his mouth with his sleeve and said “Let’s go!” while pointing to the dance floor. Minhyuk grabbed his arm and ran him to the middle of everything, where the music was the loudest and for just a little bit, Hyungwon felt human again.there are parts of being a human hyungwon misses, but there's good things about his new life, too. like all the friends he makes, and the psychic vampire he meets through those friends.





	1. our bodies are young and blue

**Author's Note:**

> hello! i was inspired by october, that one legendary hero dance practice, and the clan trilogy
> 
> warnings: suicide attempt, violence (nothing too disturbing, but there's some vampire fights), blood, and death (also talked about a general concept bc...vampires) but none of the crew dies! some slight polyamory that like evens out into endgame pairs...maybe one polyamorous group...can you guess who that'll be? enjoy!

“Dude, you’re the worst fucking vampire ever,” Jooheon said, throwing a pillow at his roommate’s head. Said roommate groaned and lifted his head up for the first time in what seemed like centuries, eyes nearly shut with sleep but open just enough to glare at Jooheon.

 

“Why do I have to wake up to insults?”

 

“That’s exactly it. You’re only just waking up now. Vampires are supposed to sleep all day and be up at night, but you sleep then, too. If you sleep 24 hours a day, what the hell are you really doing? You’re gonna starve to death. You can’t have sleep for dinner.”

 

“I don’t like sucking people’s blood anyway,” Hyungwon said. “It’s like...rude or something.”

 

“You don’t have to kill them, though. You can just suck a little at a time you know? Pretend you’re going in for a kiss or something, give them a little nip.”

 

“Fuck that, dude. Then I’m just doing shit without getting anybody’s permission or anything. That’s fucked up. I collect my meager food supply from the blood bank three times a week just like I’m supposed to.”

 

“You’re also the only vampire I know who uses a straw to drink his blood,”

 

“It gets messy without one! _ I _ know I’m a vampire,  _ you _ know I’m a vampire. What do I have to prove? I certainly don’t need to be walking around with blood all over me just so people know who I am and what I do. My bendy straws and I are very happy together.” Hyungwon said, fighting the urge to turn over and go back to sleep even as his body begged him to do just that. There wasn’t even a blanket or any pillows on the couch, just his face pressed to the cushion. Yet he was too tired to care. He was always too tired.

 

“Aw, hyung. Don’t go back to sleep. Listen, I’m worried about you. Is there a reason you’re so tired all the time? Not to be rude but you don’t really...do anything that would make you tired. Like, you’re kind of a homebody, y’know? Are you depressed?” At that, Hyungwon sat up.

 

“Hm,” he went, suddenly thoughtful. “I’ve never considered that. Doesn’t that mean I’m not?” he asked, looking at Jooheon. “Wouldn’t I know?”

 

“Well, I’d assume so, but...maybe you just need something to do? Maybe you’re bored with life. Honestly, hyung. We’re going to live for...forever so I think the least you can do is try to find something fun to do with it. Maybe you should get a part time job. That’d give you some purpose, wouldn’t it? Or- Ooh, I know. Why don’t you go out there and fall in love?”

 

“Those both sound incredibly tiring and like there’s a high risk of my soul getting crushed.”

 

“At least then you’d feel something, am I right?” Jooheon said, expression very bright despite the fact that he’d just thrown his roommate face first into an existential crisis. He clapped Hyungwon on the back and left to go to his friend Changkyun’s house, and Hyungwon fell back asleep, face first in the couch cushion and trying not to think anymore.

 

When Hyungwon woke back up, it was finally nighttime, and Jooheon was still gone. He felt lonely, and now that he was really thinking about it, rather empty, and not in the hungry way. He drained a blood bag anyway, his straw stabbing through a little too hard, (Fuck you, Jooheon), and decided to go out for once, see what the city had to offer besides his apartment where he slept and ate and watched shitty daytime television and waited for Jooheon to come back. 

 

He used to be a student, two years ago. He had been in his second year of university, but then that had stopped. He was just taking a break, he told himself. Just taking some time to adjust to his relatively new life as a vampire. When he decided to go back, he’d still look 20, it wouldn’t be weird. Nevermind how strangely time passed when you were a vampire, how days sometimes felt like seconds before feeling normal again.

 

His mom paid his bills for him still, worried about him trying to work during the daytime, no matter how many times he assured her that the sun wasn’t actually deadly for vampires. She was a human, had always been, so he agreed if only to calm her. He said he’d work the graveyard shift whenever she finally got sick of helping him out, but she had paled so fast he shut up immediately.

 

He got dressed, even styled his hair up for the first time in a while, black dress shirt with a few buttons undone, long legs in black jeans.

 

_ “How dreamy,” Minhyuk said whenever Hyungwon put together a real outfit instead of his usual hoodies and sweatpants. “Like a cover of Vampire Monthly,” He gasped suddenly. “We could get you a gig! You wait right there while I call Sungjoo…” he said, and then disappeared into the kitchen to get his phone. _

 

“Minhyuk?” he said, when he finally picked up. “Remember like forever ago when you begged me to go out clubbing with you? Is that, like...Is that offer still on the table?” He heard Minhyuk giggle, and frowned.

 

“Oh, Hyungwon. I’m so over my clubbing phase. That’s not fun anymore. Now, I’m really into knitting. I’m working on my 30th scarf.” Minhyuk said brightly, and while he was happy for Minhyuk, he was still a bit disappointed.

 

“Oh, really?” he asked, trying not to sound too put out, and Minhyuk giggled again.

 

“No, you idiot. I’m always game for a good club. Where are you? Just kidding! I’ll be there in ten minutes. Just let me get some makeup on.” he said, and Hyungwon hung up feeling a little discombobulated, which was common when the person one was talking to was Minhyuk. 

 

Not everyone was a vampire, but there sure were a lot of them. It was common enough that there was hardly a social divide, apart from the occasional elderly bigot. Vampires lived among humans, worked alongside them, and sometimes they even fell in love with them. With vampires having already died, and therefore being immortal unless killed in a violent manner, there were debates on what humans would do when the amount of vampires eventually and inevitably led to overpopulation, as they would not die at quick enough rates to match humans. However, people were hesitant to make anti-vampire legislation because they could be turned when they least expected it. Of course they only cared when it might affect them. Hyungwon scoffed.

 

While the vampires in South Korea were almost always Korean, there were still lots of variations in the powers they had, coming from different bloodlines. For Minhyuk, he was gifted with features a lot more becoming of a bat than the typical vampire, such as very reliable echolocation, and bats sometimes swarmed him asking him for help when they needed it. He was close with them, and while there was not necessarily a bat kingdom, Minhyuk’s family acted somewhat as ambassadors between bats and vampires, so he had to be diplomatic at all times.

 

By the time Hyungwon had thought all of that through in his moments of silence, Minhyuk had appeared in front of him, fangs glistening in the city light when he smiled. He was charming, enough that any human would line up to be bitten by him, and it was something he knew and was proud of.

 

“Hey, Hyungwonnie! I never thought I’d get a call from you for a night out. Don’t you look lovely?” he said, twisting the stud in Hyungwon’s earlobe. 

 

“What’s the goal of tonight, hm? A lay? Do you need to feed? Or is it my personal favorite kind of night out; the one where you just go out to have a good time?” Minhyuk asked, looking up at Hyungwon expectantly.

 

“I’m open to options,” Hyungwon said, which made Minhyuk’s eyes glint with excitement.

 

“Oh?” he said.

 

“But I don’t think I want to feed if I can avoid it. It makes me feel bad.” At that, Minhyuk’s expression softened a bit.

  
“You were human once. I understand. You think they’d be scared?”

 

“I don’t know. I know some people are even into it, and would give me permission, but there’s just something about it…”

 

“You can feed off other vampires, you know. It’s not the same...like at all. But it’s something!” he said, as if that was supposed to be good news. It wasn’t news at all, though, for Hyungwon remembered a time long ago when Minhyuk had bared his neck for him and went “ _ Drink up, you’re so weak right now, you-” _

 

“Yeah, I think I’m good with my blood bags and everything. I ate before I came out, so..”

 

“Okay! That’s fine. We won’t do anything you’re not sure about, okay? If you do something you regret, you have to live with it for literally forever,” he laughed then, a fake one to sound like a movie villain, and then a real one following it, grabbing Hyungwon’s arm happily and teleporting them to one of Minhyuk’s favorite clubs.

 

The night was a blur of loud music that pulsed in Hyungwon’s own body like a heartbeat. Suddenly he remembered a biology lab where the whole class had compared their heart rates. Hyungwon’s ended up being fast, 90 beats per minute, and the teacher had asked if he was anxious about something, laughed good naturedly before putting an x in the 90+ column. Oh, how things had changed, Hyungwon thought. How slow your heart beats when you’re dead.

 

Except becoming a vampire was a little different than the media made it seem. Amongst vampires, the process of a human being turned into a vampire was called the “First Death” or less formally “the turning”. Vampires could still breathe, have a heartbeat (however slow it may be), sleep, get hungry, etc. The second and final death would occur only if a vampire was essentially murdered. Other than that, it was pretty hard to kill a vampire, especially a vampire who had never been turned, who had began life as a little vamp with nubby little fangs the size of walnuts, hardly sharp enough to puncture an apple so they could suck the juice out. In a more financially conscious family, the child would eat the whole thing. Normal foods could fill vampires up, stave off the hunger, but there was nothing like blood. It was an undeniable fact of life, and vampires who went too long without their share of blood usually suffered from it. They couldn’t die that way, their bodies viciously stubborn like that, but they’d be sick, weak, lose weight as if denied any food at all. It was not a simple dietary choice, but a question of living or just surviving. 

 

The night after Hyungwon’s turning, he was trembling and itchy all over like he had chicken pox, and he could hardly see. Minhyuk crouched beside his body in the alley, ripped open a blood bag with his teeth and poured it into Hyungwon’s mouth without even considering that Hyungwon might choke, because he couldn’t, not when he was guzzling the blood down so hungrily, like it was water after a week in the desert, when his body was shaking and sore and he just wanted to go home but he couldn’t remember where that was.

 

“Who are you?” he croaked, out of breath after drinking the blood in such big gulps, and he was still starving. “Was it you who did this to me?” he asked, almost angry, but too tired to do anything about it.

 

“No,” Minhyuk said, smiling gently with all his teeth showing, stroking Hyungwon’s hair, soaked with sweat, pushing it out of his face, and his hand felt strangely warm, like no vampire’s hand should, not in Hyungwon’s imagination at least. “I’m a friend. I found you here, and you’ve probably figured this out by now, but you’re not a human anymore. Some asshole left you here, but all he did was feed. Do you feel okay?” he asked gently, and Hyungwon felt like words took so much energy, more energy than he could ever have imagined expending on a mere sentence, so he nodded, and felt his gums were itchy. He raised a trembling hand to his face, and felt the bump of the fangs under his lips. Minhyuk chuckled, but not mockingly.

 

“Yup, you’ve got fangs, the whole package. It’s gonna take some getting used to I figure.” Minhyuk scooped him up in his arms, much stronger than they looked, and he looked down at Hyungwon’s crumpled figure. Hyungwon wanted to protest, but he didn’t know where else he could go.

 

“You’re coming with me, just until you can at least, I don’t know, fucking stand maybe. I’ll teach you the ropes of this vampire business. I’d call myself a professional vampire, but that’d be bragging, and also silly, because at this age I better be pretty good at being myself.” Minhyuk said, and Hyungwon could already tell he was chatty. For some reason, only the last bit had stuck out to him, and he asked quietly how old Minhyuk was. Minhyuk took off into the sky with Hyungwon held firmly in his arms. Somehow, Hyungwon never feared Minhyuk would drop him.

 

“The number would boggle your once-human little mind, I’m afraid, and how rude! To ask a charming man his age. I’ll forgive you, and I’ll tell you just this once. I’m…” Minhyuk had said, but Hyungwon had fallen asleep just as he said the number. 

 

The club was both better and worse than Hyungwon remembered. It was just as loud but so foreign to him then. He felt like he was trespassing in a human space even as he saw plenty of other vampires dancing in the masses, shameless and vibrant. There was so much youth there, so much... _ life.  _ It made Hyungwon vaguely uncomfortable in a way he wished it didn’t, and he sat at the bar, sipping the same drink for twenty minutes while Minhyuk fist pumped in his general direction before slowing down enough to sit beside him. He leaned close, elbow on the counter and face resting on his palm, studying Hyungwon for a moment.

 

“What’s wrong, pretty boy? Not your thing after all? We can go. I’ve had my fun,” Minhyuk offered, and Hyungwon felt bad to rip him away from a good time.

 

“It’s just weird. I feel like I’m not supposed to be here,” he said. “I have so much power over them, and they don’t even know it. I’ll dance with you for this next song, but then I want to leave. This isn’t a place for me, I’m sorry,” he said, and Minhyuk waved it off.

 

“There’s no apologies on a night out. We leave that heavy shit for the morning after. Do me a favor. Down the rest of that drink, and then have another one. Dance with me for two songs, three if you can manage it, and then we can get the hell out of here. Do that for me?” he asked in a way that left little room for disagreement. It wasn’t exactly that it was pushy, it was that it seemed so hopeful. Hyungwon would feel like a monster if he rejected him, and it was a reasonable enough request. He threw back the rest of his drink instead of answering, thinking the way his throat moved as he swallowed the liquor was answer enough, and sure enough, Minhyuk grinned brightly, seeming so, so youthful.

 

Hyungwon knocked back a second drink, wiped the back of his mouth with his sleeve and said “Let’s go!” while pointing to the dance floor. Minhyuk grabbed his arm and ran him to the middle of everything, where the music was the loudest and for just a little bit, Hyungwon felt human again. 

 

Minhyuk escorted Hyungwon to his apartment afterwards. Jooheon was probably home by then, asleep or working on more music. He’d been a workaholic lately, which Hyungwon both respected and loathed. He missed pinching Jooheon’s cheeks and sharing frozen pizzas with him and having cleaning dance parties with him when the dishes get too terrible to ignore anymore. Jooheon had good taste in music and the rap music blasting into his eardrums made scraping five day old grime off plates a bit less horrifying. He remembered once when Jooheon’s hand touched wet food in the sink and he had screamed for what seemed like ten minutes in total mortification while Hyungwon laughed so hard he thought he might literally be on the brink of death, his stomach burning. When Jooheon had finally gotten over it he’d whined over Hyungwon doing nothing to calm him down, while Hyungwon remained insistent that he was inconsolable, that only time could have helped him.

 

Minhyuk gave him a little peck on the mouth as he saw him off, a ritual of theirs. Somehow, their relationship defied definition. Hyungwon owed a lot to him; his life, for one. Minhyuk had taught him everything he needed to know, and when Hyungwon was unsure about something, Minhyuk tried to explain as well as he could.

 

Hyungwon stared at him for a second longer than necessary, and then pecked him on the lips one more time, feeling especially grateful that night. Minhyuk grinned back in a simple way, just warm and happy, not expecting anything further. Hyungwon smiled back, and then turned to head into the apartment complex. He turned around once just to tell Minhyuk something really quick, but he was already gone.

 

* * *

 

Changkyun was a younger vampire, a baby as far as vampires were concerned, turned mere months ago. His fangs came in with a youthful sort of crookedness, the bulge of the teeth against his lips obvious even with his mouth closed. There was never any telling with the fangs really as to whether or not they’d come in right. Sometimes vampire dentists needed to get involved and realign them. When Jooheon joked about Changkyun needing braces he whined and it turned into a hiss that made him cover his mouth.

 

“Sorry, I’m not used to this whole thing yet,” he said, and Minhyuk cackled.

 

“That’s okay. You’re a fresh, young, vamp. However, a hiss like that might piss off a higher ranking or older vampire that isn’t as understanding, so be careful, okay?” He nodded, and Minhyuk pulled him into a bone-crushing hug. 

 

“You’ll get used to it,” Hyungwon said, patting Changkyuns’ head as he struggled to breathe while captured in Minhyuk’s embrace. “Technically, Minhyuk’s family is his clan, but he tends to take people under his wing.” he said, sparing a secret glance at him. “Think you’ll ever break off?” he asked Minhyuk, and Minhyuk shook his head.

 

“I can’t see mother being very happy with that. I’d be kind of disowning my family by breaking off, but I can kind of do what I want, add people to a little sub-clan of my own if I'd like.”

 

“This is a literal question, not me being rude,” Changkyun clarified, because sometimes his tone got read wrong, his voice a little monotone naturally. “What is the benefit of having a sub-clan?” Minhyuk smiled warmly.

 

“Mostly? Protection. Alternatively, though, a sense of belonging. A clan’s bond is sacred and very strong. If we keep calling it a sub-clan I think it makes it seem less important, but it’s not any less strong, it’s just called that because it branches off of someone already in a clan. If someone in your clan is ever in danger, you’ll know immediately. It’s like tying all your souls together in a knot.”

 

“That sounds rather permanent...and nice,” Changkyun said, feeling his heart clench at the words. Belonging. He didn’t want to seem too eager, but he’d love that. He’d been lucky enough to meet such great and helpful people despite his inexperience and confusion, and having that kind of connection with them would just make it that much better. Whenever he was alone, he was afraid of an older and stronger vampire picking a fight with him and not being able to defend himself, but to have strong vampires like Hyunwoo and Minhyuk on his side would be a great source of comfort.

 

“Oh, Changkyunnie, you’re blushing. How precious,” Minhyuk said,  and his eyes glinted red and back to black again. 

 

When Hyungwon was still very new to the whole vampire thing himself, the way his eyes flashed red used to make him nervous, make him think Minhyuk was planning something, but time passed and Minhyuk had never hurt him. It was cute now, knowing why it happened, that Minhyuk got so happy or excited sometimes that his body mistook it as time to feed, flashed red for a moment before realizing it was just Minhyuk having a good time. It was like any of Minhyuk’s quirks, his uneven eyelids, or the way his voice broke on words sometimes, all raspy and excited. Or his powers. The kind only a centuries old vampire could have.

  
  


Truthfully, Hyungwon shouldn’t have had any powers. Turned vampires very rarely had any special abilities, but every so often someone would be bitten by a very powerful vampire whose powers came through the bite just enough to transfer to their victim. The abilities were not as strong as the original vampire’s, but they could be trained and honed, made stronger.

 

Hyungwon was able to hypnotize people. 

 

His fangs extended just a bit, pulling into a beautiful smile, his eyes cloudy and purple, voice sounding far away, as if in a dream, the world going hazy. Just for fun, he tried on Changkyun, hoped maybe he had just enough human left in him for it to work, but didn’t try anything weird.

 

“Changkyunnie,” he said, voice like chimes or a music box. “Would you get hyung a drink?” he said, and Changkyun seemed to get sleepy, nodding and getting up. Minhyuk slapped his arm.

 

“Leave Changkyunnie alone,” he laughed. “He’s impressionable,” Changkyun came back in and put the glass of juice on the table, slumping back into the chair.

 

“Thank you,” Hyungwon said, and his eyes calmed back to black. Changkyun sat up straight, suddenly alert, and went “What just happened?” and Hyungwon doubled over laughing.

 

“I might have hypnotized you, but in my defense, I didn’t think it’d actually work.” Changkyun frowned.

 

“Hyung,” he whined. “Why do I keep finding out about new powers you guys have? I would have gotten you a drink if you had just asked normally,”

 

“To be fair, I haven’t known about this power for very long myself.” Hyungwon replied, sipping at his juice. 

 

“Do you think you can hypnotize vampires?” Minhyuk asked, his interest piqued.

 

“I’m not sure. It’d be embarrassing to try if it didn’t work, and you’re too powerful to try it on. Where’s Jooheon?” he asked, and Changkyun snorted. Coming up from the floor, a rather dramatic and unnecessary way to enter a room in those modern times, Jooheon scoffed.

 

“I resent that,” he said, and Minhyuk pounced on him.

 

“What year is this, Jooheon-ah? 1948? Why the coming up through the floor? Just appear like a normal person,” he said, but like with anything Minhyuk did, it was strangely flirty, and Jooheon struggled for some extra space between the two of them.

 

“I wasn’t even around in 1948, hyung, and I was a human once, remember? Let me enjoy my newfound supernatural abilities. I spent like 5 years of my childhood imagining what this would be like.” He swished a cape behind him and Minhyuk lost it.

 

“A cape! You’ve been a vampire for like 5 years now and you’re still wearing a cape! Move on with the times, Jooheonie! Buy a crop top,”

 

“Wow, a crop top is not the first article of clothing I’d recommend to someone just branching out into modern fashion,” Hyungwon said.

 

“Yeah,” Changkyun added. “Jooheon hyung doesn’t even have the body for it,” he giggled when Jooheon grabbed him by the collar, and Minhyuk and Hyungwon looked at each other knowingly.

 

“I’d kill you if you weren’t already dead, snaggletooth.” he groaned, and Changkyun just cackled. 

 

“You  _ terrify _ me, hyung,” he said, smiling so big that all his teeth were out. His slightly crooked fangs made Jooheon let him go, unfortunately finding them rather cute.

 

“Play nice, boys. We have like...an eternity together. We better get along,”

 

“Do you think we can really stay friends for forever?” Changkyun asked suddenly, making Minhyuk’s expression ever so briefly turn solemn.

 

“I do,” Minhyuk replied softly. “I really do,” Hyungwon placed a hand on Minhyuk’s arm to snap him out of it, to keep him from going to a sad place, and Minhyuk smiled up at him brightly and gratefully.

 

“So what about this Hyunwoo guy?” Hyungwon asked, realizing that Changkyun had mentioned him a few times throughout the evening and he’d never actually met him before. “Does he have any powers?”

 

“Super strength,” Hyungwon’s eyes narrow.

 

“But all vampires have-” Minhyuk laughs before he can finish his sentence.

 

“I don’t think you understand. He’s  _ incredibly  _ strong,” The way Minhyuk gazes at him meaningfully makes Hyungwon shut up, taking his word for it. 

 

“Oh.”

 

“You don’t know Hyunwoo hyung and his friends, hyung?” Jooheon asked, almost tripping on his cape as he walked over. “I thought I mentioned them before.” His expression suddenly changed into something mischievous. 

 

“You know who you’d like?” Jooheon asked, raising his eyebrows. “Hoseok hyung.” Minhyuk gasped and high fived him.

 

“Who’s that? What’s so funny about that?” Hyungwon said, frowning.

 

“It’s not that it’s funny, exactly. Hoseok is just...a very good looking fellow,” Minhyuk said. “He’s a pretty old vampire, human once like yourself. Why do I attract all the turned people? Is Hyunwoo my only fellow original vampire?”

 

“Kihyun,” Changkyun supplied, and Minhyuk pointed in his direction with an expression of surprise.

 

“That’s right! That evil little man. Anyways, Hoseok is really strong, very pretty to look at, and has, shall we say, an array of powers? He’s psychic to some degree, has a really good heart. Oh, and guess what? Hyunwoo turned him,” Minhyuk said, and Changkyun, Jooheon, and Hyungwon collectively gasped.

 

“I never knew that,” Jooheon said, eyes wide with surprise.

 

“Why did he do that?” Hyungwon asked, and Minhyuk looked like he was remembering a darker time. 

 

“Hoseok kind of owes his life to Hyunwoo, but that’s not why he did it. He wasn’t in it for an eternal servant or anything, and I think honestly Hyunwoo doesn’t see it as such a big deal now, but Hoseok was in a bad place, and tried to jump off a building. Well, Hoseok has a fear of heights. Still has it now, actually, so flying is a challenge. But so his jump was kind of a flail. He wanted to take it back before he even really left the ground, but that’s not how gravity works. However, the building wasn’t actually that high, even though that sounds strange, so when he hit the ground he was severely, severely injured, but he wasn’t dead. Would’ve been if Hyunwoo hadn’t shown up.”

 

“But all vampires are dead?” Changkyun whispered to Jooheon.

 

“Humans can’t be turned once they’re dead, and the process of becoming a vampire is called the First Death. Vampires are in a somewhat undead state but that’s after. Humans can only be turned while technically still alive, even if it’s just barely,” Jooheon whispered back, immersed in the story. 

 

“So Hyunwoo saw him laying there, and like, every bone was broken or fractured. He couldn’t move, and was obviously in a lot of pain and very regretful, so Hyunwoo leaned down and bit him on the neck. Hoseok was scared, but like I said, he couldn’t move. He asked Hyunwoo what he was doing, and Hyunwoo told him he was giving him a second chance, and then he just kind of relaxed and let it happen. Do you guys remember this? Being turned is very tiring. You fall asleep whether you want to or not because your body has to accommodate all the changes happening. In Hoseok’s case, he woke up two weeks later because his bones had to heal along with his powers and fangs coming in. He said thank you, and has stuck with Hyunwoo ever since. Kihyun was there before that. Sometimes I think Kihyun is older than time itself, which is funny, because that’s his power. Time travel. So maybe I’m right, actually.”

 

“Does everyone have powers but me?” Jooheon asked, having recovered oddly quickly from the story, and Minhyuk snorted.

 

“We’re not sure why Hoseok has powers, either. Hyunwoo has his super strength, but that’s not even what transferred over. I’d chalk it up to some weird cosmic business and the strange nature of Hoseok being turned. It was completely willingly after the first few seconds. That’s very rare. Hyungwon just got a powerful bite, I guess. You two are actually normal,” he said, pointing to Jooheon and Changkyun.

 

“It’s those two who are the weird ones,” he said, and smiled at Hyungwon who lightly hit his arm. 

  
  
  


“Kihyun is going to be coming over, by the way,” Minhyuk said, putting on his clan necklace. He seemed to be full of an unusual excitement that teetered on the edge of anxiety, and it confused Hyungwon, who usually saw Minhyuk in a state of utmost confidence.

 

“Are you alright?” he asked, and Minhyuk nodded hurriedly.

 

“Kihyun and I have a, how do I put this, friendly rivalry? But if I don’t wear all my official garb he’ll talk shit the whole time he’s here. ‘Minhyuk-ah, you disgrace to the Lee name, to think you’re born into this, acting like a freshly turned mortal’. Then I won’t be able to help myself and I’ll talk shit back and Hoseok will be like ‘Apologize to each other’ and Hyunwoo will sigh because it’s been how many years now and we’re still acting like that?” he said, suddenly using a much deeper voice to speak, which Hyungwon guessed was an impression of Hyunwoo. When Minhyuk started picking up speed as he talked, Hyungwon kindly shushed him and put his hands on his shoulders.

 

“It’ll be fine. You’ve known these guys for a while, right? They’re your friends. Everything will work out okay. They’re just coming to visit, after all.”

 

“Oh, Hyungwonnie, I know. I’m just a little too worked up is all. It’s been ages since I’ve seen them, and honestly I missed them. I have so much energy because I’m excited to see them. I made Kihyun sound kind of bad, but honestly the bickering is fun. Don’t ever tell him I said that though. Even if that little bastard needs to stop nagging me to clean my house. I’ll do that when I’m good and ready dammit! Just because he’s some kind of neat freak…Does he pay my bills?...” Minhyuk trailed off as Hyungwon heard a knock at the door.

 

“Shit,” Minhyuk said, fumbling with a pendant. “Don’t open it yet. I need my medallion. That asshole, you can’t even see my medallion. It goes in my pocket, but he’ll know if it’s missing…” he shoved the medallion into his pocket hastily and Hyungwon took his nod as the cue to open the door.

 

“I heard you, Lee Minhyuk,” Kihyun said, trying to walk in only to be stopped by some kind of invisible force. Oh yeah, that. He sighed.

 

“Can we come in?” he asked, world weary and Minhyuk cackled. 

 

“Take that, you fucker. Wait until I’m kind enough to let you in to insult me,” he said, and Hyunwoo, Hyungwon assumed, if Minhyuk’s description had been accurate, had a fond smile on his face, like a father seeing two children bicker. 

 

“Why should I wait? You didn’t wait for me to come in before you started insulting me-”

 

“Minhyuk-ah, can we enter?” A third person had said, and Hyungwon could only assume he was the Hoseok he had heard so much about. He looked too handsome, and was so pale Hyungwon knew he must’ve been born that way. Being turned didn’t drain  _ that  _ much color from one’s face, and if Hyunwoo’s complexion was anything to go by, not all vampires were pale at all. Apparently they could be pretty tanned. 

 

“Yes, of course, Hoseok,” Minhyuk said, looking pointedly at Kihyun. “Since you asked so nicely…” he said, and the three of them stepped into Minhyuk’s home.

 

“Dusty,” Kihyun said. “When did you last dust?”

 

“I told you!” Minhyuk said, throwing his hands up in the air, looking at Hyungwon.

 

“How about a ‘hello’, Kihyun? A simple greeting?”

 

“I was around before that word was even invented. I can do as I please.” Kihyun said, and Hyungwon was beginning to think that Minhyuk was right about Kihyun being as old as time itself.

 

“Who’s this?” Hyunwoo asked, and he spoke more gently than Hyungwon expected him to despite his deep and authoritative voice. “You haven’t introduced us,” At that, Minhyuk seemed to forget all his arguing with Kihyun and straighten up.

 

“This is my little vamplet, Hyungwon. My pride and joy! Found him on the street myself and nursed him back to health. Oh, but he doesn’t live here anymore, he’s all grown up. It’s quite sad, actually,” Minhyuk said, dramatic as always, looking off as if in some kind of movie. “Now if I want to see my baby I have to go all the way to Changmun-dong. Hyungwonnnie, how could you move so far away?”

 

“Sorry, hyung,” he said, smiling fondly. “I was living there before I got turned. It wasn’t on purpose.” He turned towards the three vampires and bowed. “Nice to meet you,” he said, and they bowed back. 

 

“Our Hoseok was turned as well. Hyunwoo and I were born into it.” It was just a facet of Kihyun’s way of speaking, but the way he gently indicated some sort of ownership over Hoseok made him smile. Hyungwon fought the urge to say that he knew all that already, but didn’t want to make Hoseok uncomfortable. His eye twitched a bit at Kihyun’s old way of speaking. Minhyuk had explained previously that “born into it” was how older vampires referred to vampires who were never human, as they were born vampires. It had fallen out of usage, as many words and phrases do, but older vampires were stubborn, Kihyun in particular.

 

Hoseok opened his mouth to speak, but his eyes were overtaken with a bright amber glow, and Kihyun took one of his arms gently to steady him.

 

“He’s having a vision,” Kihyun explained, and Hyungwon nodded, thankful that Minhyuk had mentioned Hoseok was psychic, or he may have overreacted. It was over quickly as the original dark brown color returned, and Hoseok came back to reality.

 

“We have more guests coming,” he said, and Minhyuk grinned.

 

“I forgot to tell you! Jooheon and Changkyun are coming. My other babies.”

 

“Stop hoarding new vamps,” Hyunwoo said, shoving Minhyuk lightly, or at least trying to. Minhyuk flew across the room anyway, and laughed with Hyunwoo.

 

“I can’t help it! They need me, and they’re all so cute...If you hadn’t gotten to Hoseok before I could have then I might have built him his own coffin from scratch.” Hoseok smiled at that, a big warm smile that made Hyungwon feel as though he’d known him for years.

 

“Minhyukkie is such a sweet talker, always has been. How dangerous,” he laughed, the sound filling the room. It was such a human sound, it made Hyungwon’s chest ache. “Oh! Changkyun-ah, watch out!” Hoseok said, just as Changkyun had entered. He jumped out of the way right as a vase fell off a wooden bookshelf and shattered while he’d been standing. He looked at the shattered glass on the floor and then looked back at Hoseok. “Holy shit, thanks hyung,” he said, and Hoseok smiled at him before turning to Hyungwon. “Sorry, a vision interrupted me. I’m Hoseok! It’s nice to meet you. Minhyuk mentioned once that he was helping someone with the transition. I’m happy I can finally see the person he was taking such good care of.” he said, and pulled Hyungwon into a hug. 

 

It surprised Hyungwon, but he managed to snap out of it in time to hug Hoseok back before it became awkward. Minhyuk hugged him often too, but this was different. Minhyuk’s hugs felt like he had been taught how to hug, and Hoseok hugged like a human, like someone who grew up hugging and being hugged. 

 

“Do vampires hug?” he’d asked Minhyuk once, and Minhyuk had looked thoughtful. 

 

“The new generations do, a mix of learning from humans and people who have been turned spreading their culture. It’s not as natural of a thing for us, though. Especially the older generations. The closest thing was my mother kind of folding me up in her wings? It was cozy, I think. Don’t remember. It was centuries ago,” he said, and Hyungwon had just nodded. 

 

Hoseok was just so shamelessly...human, and it was refreshing. Kihyun smiled to himself when Hyungwon hugged back, and then tapped Hoseok on the shoulder when it seemed he had been hugging Hyungwon for too long, grinning fondly, like someone who was very used to their friend’s antics. 

 

“You’ll have to excuse our Hoseok. He’s very touchy, and very human still. Sometimes I forget he’s a vampire.” he laughed, and Hyunwoo smiled too. 

 

“Oh, it’s no problem. It’s been awhile since I’ve gotten an authentic human hug,” Hyungwon said, smiling, and Hoseok grinned back at him. It was a smile that looked so happy just to be acknowledge and understood, to be accepted. It was so open and defenseless, like he was giving whoever was on the receiving end the ability to look right into his heart. Hyungwon almost wanted to tell him to stop so he wouldn’t get hurt, but that was years of cynicism making its way to the surface. Hyungwon couldn’t imagine the man in front of his ever being sad enough to want to jump off a building, but he felt a wave of nausea at the thought of it.

 

Briefly, Hyungwon thought to himself that Hoseok didn’t need any of his other powers, so long as he had that smile of his. 

 

Jooheon entered with a grocery bag full of poorly hidden blood bags, some Gatorade, and a Twix bar. Jooheon had never been able to shake off his human cravings for sweets, and it was endearing. In another hand was another bag of blood bags, and also chips and various dips. Changkyun went to help him with the bags, noticing Jooheon grimace from the weight.

 

“It’s a feast,” Hyungwon deadpanned, and Kihyun laughed this high-pitched hyena laugh that Hyungwon hadn’t expected would come out of his small, somewhat pretentious body. He laughed so hard he grabbed onto Hyunwoo for support, who didn’t budge.

 

“Kihyun hyung!” Changkyun said, and at the sound of Changkyun’s voice, Kihyun stopped laughing and ran over to him. He had dropped the bags in excitement, and Jooheon’s cry of “The chips!” went unheard. Kihyun immediately began fussing, fixing pieces of Changkyun’s hair so they fell perfectly.

 

“They know each other?” Hyungwon whispered, to no one in particular, and Hyunwoo nodded.

 

“Changkyun is sort of...his baby.” he said, and Hyungwon decided he’d ask for more details later, when Changkyun wasn’t being helicopter mom’d by Kihyun. “We all know Jooheon”, Hyunwoo elaborated. “He was here last time we saw Minhyuk. He and I text,” The conspiratory way Hyunwoo said it, paired with the imagery of someone so fatherly texting was just hilarious to Hyungwon, who laughed and couldn’t seem to stop. Jooheon was chatting with Hoseok and Minhyuk, who seemed to be in a good mood, and for a little bit there was so much chatter that it sounded like one big general sound of people talking, like walking into a restaurant or standing in a crowd, where you can hear all the sounds but can’t make out any individual words.

 

Then Hoseok had another vision, and it was apparently an unwritten rule that if he had one, the nearest people had to make sure he didn’t fall, because Jooheon and Minhyuk each grabbed an arm with a swiftness. Hyungwon made a mental note of that, for whenever he’d need it.

 

It was embarrassing to Hoseok that his visions were such a spectacle, and that he couldn’t defend himself during them as well. Sometimes his visions were as small as knowing what Hyunwoo would order at the diner, or what someone was getting for their birthday. Sometimes they were huge things like Kihyun almost getting staked in his own backyard. Staking wasn’t fatal, it was a misconception, but it still really fucking hurt. Vampire hunters were rare, and often pathetic, in small groups of three or four cowards who were armed only with what they read online or in books. The one time someone had thrown cloves of garlic at Kihyun’s door, he had cackled so gleefully that they ran away crying.

 

That vision had been ambiguous, frustratingly so. At least that meant it wasn’t a life or death situation, though. As mysterious as Hoseok’s powers were, he had had them long enough to know by now that vague visions were more of a sneak preview at the future than an actual viewing, things of medium importance. Somehow, though, it had felt so much greater than that, and he felt a phantom pain in his neck, like he’d been burned. As his eyes returned to normal he hissed with pain and Kihyun was right there immediately. Hoseok’s hand went up to his neck.

 

“What’d you see?” Kihyun asked, looking at the spot where Hoseok was holding his neck. “Are you injured?”

 

“Wasn’t clear. It’s nothing bad, though. I know that much. My neck feels like it did when I got bitten. There were candles,” he said. “I was...in this house,” he said, looking around as if he had never seen it before. 

 

“Well no one here is going to bite you,” Jooheon said. “Not when I have these luscious blood bags waiting for us,” he said, holding up a sack of B-. Minhyuk laughed, because he thought everything Jooheon said was funny. Jooheon rounded on Hyungwon.

 

“Oh wait, I forgot a straw for Hyungwon hyung,”

 

“Oh, fuck off,” Hyungwon said. “It’s a preference, not a necessity, Mr. Twix bar,” He took the blood bag out of Jooheon’s hands and tore into it like a man on a mission.

 

“However, I still brought a straw with me because I’m not staining my shirt. So you can go fuck yourself,” he said, pulling his straw out of his pocket and inserting it into the hole. He sipped petulantly and Hoseok laughed loudly, startling him a bit.

 

“This is nice,” Minhyuk said. “I know not everyone knows each other that well but this just feels right. I don’t know how to explain it.”

 

“I know what you mean,” Hoseok said, and they shared a look. The conversations flowed naturally again after the suddenness of Hoseok’s vision, and Hyungwon decided to sit down and people watch while he finished his bag, like some perverse version of a Capri Sun. He suddenly missed his childhood. 

 

In doing so, he realized that Minhyuk regarded Hoseok with a practiced gentleness. Hoseok seemed a little out of it, and Hyungwon was starting to get the idea that it was a personality trait of his rather than a temporary state. Maybe being semi connected to the future did that to a guy, but Minhyuk seemed to look out for him in particular. Kihyun too, and naturally Hyunwoo as well, who had saved him in the first place. 

 

Minhyuk asked Hoseok, who had checked out for a second, a question twice before Hoseok blinked hard and said “What? I’m sorry, I didn’t hear-” but Minhyuk was very calmly asking a third time. Normally, Minhyuk played up his frustration for laughs, got loud and expressive, but for some reason Hoseok seemed to be off limits for that. Hoseok made a face of realization and answered him, and Hyungwon thought it was interesting that Hoseok was treated special and didn’t even know it, had never been talked to like that by Minhyuk to even notice the differences. He thought maybe Minhyuk liked it like that. 

 

Hours passed, or maybe two days. The weirdest thing was that time passed differently for vampires, and Hyungwon just never got used to it, still thought like a human that way. The three of them left, bowing and thanking Minhyuk for being a gracious host, saying their farewells. Hyunwoo slipped Hyungwon a little card with his number on it without saying a word, and they left.

 

“Will we see them again soon?” Changkyun asked, a bit sad that they had left.

 

“I’m no psychic like Hoseok hyung,” Hyungwon said. “But I have a feeling we’ll be seeing them very, very soon,”

 

“They barely ate the dip,” Jooheon said, before shrugging. “More for me I guess,” Changkyun laughed.

 

“Why’d Hyunwoo give me his number?” Hyungwon asked Minhyuk, turning to face him. Minhyuk looked ecstatic.

 

“He did?! That means he’s taken a liking to you. He’s got protective instincts, but he’s a gentle giant. He can’t stand to see people he’s close to get hurt, and you can only imagine how scary he can be when that happens. It’s a good thing, having his number. It’s like emergency backup.” Minhyuk said, taking off his clan necklace and his other accessories and stuffing them in a drawer. 

 

“Hyunwoo hyung is the best texter. It always seems like he’s not going to reply and then he messages you back with something surprisingly funny. Or it’s like literally a year late and he’s like “Oops just saw this” but if you call him he picks up within like two rings. I don’t understand it but I love it.” Jooheon said. He popped a chip into his mouth and smiled fondly.

 

“Wait, Changkyunnie, how do you know Kihyun?” Hyungwon asked.

 

“Oh, that! It was like a freak thing honestly. This sounds funny but like, Kihyun hyung was actually in Boston when I was there, some kind of business thing, and I was little but he heard me talking to my mom in Korean, and he was having some trouble with something in English, so he tapped me on the shoulder and asked for help. Well, I helped as best as I could, and he was really thankful and nice. He’s good with kids, y’know. Then he..tapped this thing against my forehead twice? I can’t remember, but then he was like ‘If you ever need anything, don’t hesitate to ask’ and then he was gone. I never knew what he meant though, because he didn’t give me a phone number or anything.” Changkyun said, and Hyungwon smiled fondly at the Changkyun-like way he told the story. 

 

“You’ve known Kihyun since you were 7?” Jooheon asked, practically exploding. “That’s so weird, this is fate.”

 

“Is fate real?” Hyungwon asked, looking at Minhyuk briefly. Minhyuk shrugged.

 

“Kihyun or Hoseok would know better than I. They interact with the universe in a way I can’t, but I think...I believe in it myself.” Changkyun looked at them wondering if he could continue his story, and Minhyuk smiled apologetically, motioning for him to continue. 

 

“Fast forward like 13 years, I’m hobbling through Seoul with a fresh bite on my neck and I’m about to pass out, all of a sudden I literally get scooped up and then I’m in the air, so I’m all confused. I look up, and it looks like Kihyun hyung, only he doesn’t look any older. I hadn’t realized when I was younger that he was a vampire, I guess. I never made the connection, and all his teeth look kinda sharp, so his fangs didn’t really stick out to me. Anyways, he brought me into his apartment and laid me on a couch, cooked me a meal, made me drink blood from a glass, it was really fancy. It was like I was in some kind of vampire hospital. He gave me an aspirin and cleaned the bite mark, disinfected it.”

 

“Was Kihyun hyung a nurse in a past life?” Jooheon wondered aloud, and Minhyuk snorted.

 

“When I felt okay he took me back to my home. He didn’t really have time to teach me about anything like you guys do, but that’s okay because he did so much for me. So that’s how I know him, basically.”

 

“The thing he tapped against your forehead was his clan pendant. When vampires meet a special human, like one they take a certain liking to, or they owe that human a favor, tapping the pendant against their forehead kind of marks them down, so they don’t lose tabs on them. Kihyun probably checked up on you a few times throughout those 13 years without you ever knowing, but when you got bitten, he could sense the danger, and he was indebted to you. It’s incredible, all just because you helped him translate something. I bet he never thought he’d be seeing you a as vampire,” Minhyuk said, shaking his head, mostly to himself. 

 

“Apparently I don’t give him enough credit. He  _ does  _ have a heart.” he said, and Changkyun grinned.

 

“Sometimes I wish I had known you guys as humans. You were probably so cute,” Minhyuk pouted, and Jooheon smiled, his dimples showing.

 

“I was,” he confirmed. “I’m cute now, though. So you’re not missing out on anything.”

 

“Still the most easily frightened vampire in the world,” Hyungwon said, laughing as Jooheon grumbled to himself.

  
  


“I missed Minhyukie,” Hoseok mused, flying in between Hyunwoo and Kihyun. He wasn’t the most accurate or skilled flyer, which Hyunwoo waved off as a result of his fairly recent turning. In reality, Hoseok had been a vampire for quite some time, but to Hyunwoo, it seemed like a mere month had passed. He was afraid of heights as well, so Kihyun kindly flew a little closer to him than one usually would in case he fell. Hoseok had also yet to have a vision mid-flight, but he knew it was possible, and he’d need someone to catch him. Kihyun was pretty good at that, tending to Hoseok and trying to understand him rather than scold him, although he scolded all of them pretty often. He had more life experience though, was very knowledgable about most things, and so his advice was valuable. 

 

“I did too,” Kihyun sighed, feigning annoyance, despite the fondness he had for Minhyuk. Hoseok giggled.

 

“Don’t pretend you don’t love him, Kihyunnie,” Hoseok said. “I can literally feel how content you are. His friends were nice, too. I didn’t know you knew Changkyunnie.” he said, rather conversationally, partially trying to distract himself from how high up they were off the ground.

 

“I met him when he was a human child, and I owed him a favor. I ended up caring about him a lot more than I planned. I feel some kind of...I don’t know, motherly urge to protect him?”

 

“So you’re glad he has Minhyuk to watch out for him?” Hyunwoo said, only it wasn’t really a question, because Hyunwoo was perceptive like that.

 

“Yeah, I am. Minhyuk is...energetic but he’s certainly not irresponsible when it really matters. We bicker a lot, but I trust him. He’s a good person, and he’d never let his friends get hurt, I know that.”

 

“I saw Hyunwoo slide that Hyungwon guy his number,” Hoseok said, purposely wiggling his eyebrows, and Kihyun smirked.

 

“Oh yeah? You can’t just sign up to protect every person you meet, you know.” Kihyun teased, but Hyunwoo flew quietly, a small smile on his face. It wasn’t far to Kihyun’s apartment, which was when he’d leave the group of three and they’d fly back to Hyunwoo’s home, a house that his parents had bought him long ago, the house where Hoseok lived too.

 

“Humans would say Hyunwoo is ‘spreading himself too thin’ like butter on a piece of bread,”

 

“Ah,” Kihyun said in understanding. These random bits of human trivia always fascinated him. “Like that other thing? ‘There’s enough to go around’ except this time, there’s not?” Kihyun said, the words so foreign coming out of his mouth, like his tongue was tripping over them. Hoseok laughed.

 

“Just like that. Exactly. I didn’t know you ever remembered these.” Kihyun gasped indignantly.

 

“I pay attention to every little thing you say, Hoseok. The audacity of you to imply I don’t-” he began, but Hoseok was laughing over him. Kihyun felt his brief annoyance burn up until all that was left was the lingering warmth, and he smiled apologetically, his apartment coming into view.

 

“This is where I leave you two,” he said. “Be safe,” he said like always, and Hoseok was half-convinced it was a spell of some sort, Kihyun’s clan pendant glowing just enough for Hoseok’s eyes to pick up on it. 

 

“And you as well,” Hyunwoo replied, like always, and then the flight was cool and silent.

 

“Hyunwoo hyung,” Hoseok whispered, about an hour after they had arrived home, breaking the comfortable silence. Going quite a while without talking wasn’t unusual when one lived with Hyunwoo. Sometimes Hoseok talked to Hyunwoo without Hyunwoo ever giving a vocal response, and that was okay too.

 

“Yes?” Hyunwoo replied.

 

“I was thinking...about my vision at the party. This is going to be weird, but just bear with me. I think we’re going to…”

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> some violence in this chapter, death of a non-main character

  
  


“I miss Kihyun hyung,” Changkyun said, pouting one day with his head in Jooheon’s lap. Jooheon had strong thighs that worked pretty well as a pillow.

 

“That’s random,” Hyungwon remarked. “What brought that up?”

 

“Don’t know,” he said, frowning, as if he thought it was weird too. “I just thought of him suddenly.”

 

* * *

 

 

 

Hoseok woke up in a cold sweat. Visions he had while asleep were the worst because they could masquerade as dreams, but this time he was certain of something. He yelled for Hyunwoo as he dressed quickly.

 

“Kihyun,” he managed to get out. “We have to go now, right now,” he said, not caring how informal it was. Hyunwoo nodded, and his face was straight, but Hoseok could tell he was just as worried.

 

Vampire fights made Hoseok anxious. Actually, that was an understatement. They made him feel like his heart was going to fly out of his chest, which was bad, because sometimes Hoseok had to participate in said vampire fights, and his friend’s lives were on the line, which was a pretty high stakes situation. 

 

Warring clans had died down as vampires integrated into modern society, but some of the really old clans had never moved on, stubbornly clinging to the antiquated practice, which was why 3 members of the Bae clan were all fighting Kihyun at once. It was actually a disgraceful breach of the Olde Rules to team up on a single vampire, but the Bae clan was not well known for their chivalry or honest nature, and they had dark magic on their side.

 

The sound of Hyunwoo’s angry hiss was a sound Hoseok preferred to hear as seldom as possible, because it made his blood feel like ice inside of him, but rather conveniently it had a similar effect on others as well. The three vampires turned around momentarily and Hoseok noticed the way fear flashed across their faces.

 

“You bastards,” Hyunwoo growled. “You all came because you knew you were too weak and pathetic to do anything individually. Now that the teams are even, do you honestly think you’ll make it out of this?” he said, and it was said with such a venomous edge to it, even Kihyun looked surprised, the momentary shock overriding his relief at the arrival of help. Having a quick wit about him, he used the moment where the Bae vampires were distracted to slash one across the neck. There could be no mere injuries. Vampire battles were to the death, or else they would just keep getting back at each other. The injured vampire screeched and lunged for Kihyun but Hyunwoo leapt in front of him and took each wrist in his hands, snapping them like twigs. The vampire let out a hellish shout and the other vampires looked at each other as if realizing they had made a grave mistake. Finally, Hyunwoo snapped his neck and it was over. He looked over at Kihyun who had some minor wounds and the site made him angry, but he tried to remain calm instead.

 

Standing somewhat on the sidelines, Hoseok could feel something strange inside of him, an unfamiliar force. He just did as he felt was right, letting his body take the lead, walking up to one of the two remaining vampires and putting a hand on his cheek.

 

“What’s he-?” Kihyun started to ask, and then the vampire Hoseok was touching made such a pained and miserable expression that Kihyun was sure he’d remember it forever. 

 

The hand on his face felt searing hot, as if it was melting through his skin, and he saw the worst and most haunting moments of his life all played out before him as if in a movie, all his strength seeping out of him. He could feel the moment right before he died, and he was so tired and sad by the end of everything, he was almost happy it’d finally be over. 

 

Hoseok’s face had settled into something hard and unknowable as this happened, and the other vampire had fled already, deciding it wasn’t worth it. Whoever these other vampires were, they were just too powerful, and now it was three of them against him by myself. The vampire he had been touched fell to the ground, then turned to dust, and Hoseok’s hand fell away from it. Kihyun rushed to him with concern while Hyunwoo watched with a confused and worried expression.

 

“Hoseok?” Kihyun said, shaking him a little when his face didn’t change. “Hoseok?” he said, more frantic, shaking harder, and Hoseok blinked as if coming out of a trance, and then his lip trembled and he cried, burying his face in Kihyun’s shoulder. Kihyun stroked his hair and looked over at Hyunwoo, sharing a look. Hyunwoo put a big hand on each of them, and then they were in Hyunwoo’s home.

 

“Hoseok-ah,” Hyunwoo said, voice authoritative enough to make Hoseok snap his head up, as if he forgot he was crying. “What happened back there?”

 

“I just got this feeling,” he said, wiping at his eyes. “I felt like I was supposed to touch him, so I did, but it was horrible,” He stared at the floor for a moment as if overcome by a wave of great horror and more tears fell as he did so. “I’m never using that ability again. I want it gone and taken away. It’s too cruel, it’s inhumane, it’s-”

 

“It’s a vampire ability. They’re not supposed to be humane,” Kihyun said gently. “Your human heart is so tender, Hoseok. What do we do with you?”

 

“It’s torture. I can’t accept that. Maybe it is the human part of me, but I’m not doing that to people, not even to my worst enemies.” Hyunwoo put a strong hand on Hoseok’s back.

 

“You don’t have to use it ever again if you don’t want to. Nobody is going to make you, and for all we know it was a one time thing, but Hoseok, those vampires were going to kill Kihyun. They wouldn’t hesitate to kill you or I either, if they were able to. What you did today was save a friend, and that vampire you turned to dust will serve as an example. They won’t be trying that again, I assure you. Nobody hurts my…” Hyunwoo said, and then trailed off, as if he was embarrassed, or didn’t know what word to use, but Kihyun caught it, the way his lips had just begun to shape the word.

 

“Your clan, Hyunwoo?” he said, but received no answer. Hoseok bit his bottom lip so hard he drew blood.

  
  


* * *

 

 

 

“Jesus Christ,” Minhyuk said, and Hyungwon could tell he had bad news. He was at Minhyuk’s house, had been there a lot with Jooheon and Changkyun since the gathering with Hyunwoo, Kihyun, and Hoseok. It felt nice, comfortable to be there together. Even when Jooheon was home, the apartment just felt too lonely.

 

“Kihyun got attacked last night. The Bae clan sent some absolute fucking  _ goons  _ for him. Kihyun is an incredibly strong vampire,” Minhyuk said, concern on his face. “But three vampires at once makes it hard to focus or land hits, and it’s actually against the Olde Rules. Clans aren’t even supposed to fucking fight each other anymore, especially not three-on-one.”

 

“Is he okay?” Changkyun asked, and while everyone was alarmed at the news, he seemed the most upset. Hyungwon blamed it on the pendant tapping, the bond they had formed. After Kihyun saved him, the favor should have been seen as repaid, and the magic worn off. Yet, they seemed to still have a connection. Hyungwon remembered suddenly how Changkyun had said he'd randomly thought of Kihyun, on the same night that Kihyun got ambushed. He stared at Changkyun for a second, and then brought his attention back to Minhyuk.

 

“He’s fine, minor injuries that will heal in a bit. Vampires heal very fast. Luckily, Hyunwoo and Hoseok showed up before anything too bad could happen,”

 

“How’d they know?” Jooheon asked in awe.

 

“Hoseok had a vision, told Hyunwoo they had to haul ass and they got over there just in time.” He paused briefly, as if debating whether or not to tell them something. His lips were pursed.

 

“Hyunwoo tells me that Hoseok turned a vampire to dust last night.” he said, troubled. “He’s never done that before. His powers seem a bit unstable. New ones show up all the time and sometimes they’re gone the next day. This battle left him kind of shaken up. I’m worried,” At the mention of Hoseok's name, Hyungwon's eyes widened. 

 

“Turned him to dust?” Jooheon asked, horrified. Minhyuk nodded solemnly.

 

“The way vampires are, you can’t just kick their ass to teach them a lesson. They’ll keep coming back. Vampire battles are til the Second Death. For vampires it’s a way of life, but for turned vamps like you guys, this can be very upsetting. Hoseok isn’t a violent person, but sometimes there’s no choice but to fight. It’s hard on him. I pray none of you ever have to participate in a battle. I never even taught any of you how to fight. I see now what a huge oversight that was. I’m hoping this random attack was just that: random. Most of the vampire world has moved on from this, things are safer now than they’ve ever been, so why suddenly…” Minhyuk asked himself, getting lost in a train of thought.

 

“This might sound dumb,” Hyungwon asked. “But you said Hoseok’s powers were unstable. Is there any way to like, fix that? Or stabilize them?”

 

“I don’t know,” Minhyuk said, thoughtful. “Nothing I know of. Kihyun would probably know. There are some things we just can't know for sure. Vampires are very ancient beings, but there are some things older and more powerful than us, things we can't truly understand."

 

“I know I haven’t been a vampire for long,” Changkyun said. “But I’ve never heard of vampires having multiple and changing powers the way Hoseok hyung does.”

 

“That’s because it’s not supposed to happen, to be honest. I’m not sure we’ll ever truly understand the unique situation he’s in. I just want him to be okay. It’s like nothing in life ever works out for him.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i have quite a bit of this written but i decided to drag it out more by making the chapters a bit shorter. otherwise it'd be over pretty fast! i hope you enjoyed this update. they should be more often


	3. Chapter 3

 

Hyungwon saw the three vampires sporadically after that, sometimes one at a time, two at a time, in different combinations. One time, it was just Hoseok and Kihyun, Hyunwoo busy with paperwork.

 

“What’s with all this paperwork he’s always filling out?” Jooheon asked once, and Kihyun laughed.

 

“It’s not all fun and games being a vampire. Not when you’re born into it, anyway. Lots of official documents, and Hyunwoo’s clan is pretty important. Been around..forever.” 

 

“Not that I’m jealous, but why don’t we have to do any of that?” Changkyun asked.

 

“It might sound a little ignorant, but simply because of the age difference, and certain cultural aspects. Like you, for example, Changkyunnie. You’re new to this. You just don’t have the knowledge of the vampire world and its culture to be in charge of such important documents. I apologize for how that sounds.”

 

“No, that’s fair,” Changkyun put his hands up in surrender. “I get it. I wouldn’t want to be in charge of something so important anyways.” 

 

It was only then that Hyungwon noticed Hoseok hadn’t said a word, and was clinging to Kihyun for dear life, body tensed. Kihyun seemed so used to it, opened his mouth to reply to Changkyun before he got distracted by Hoseok tugging on his sleeve, giving him a pointed look. He nodded sympathetically, whispered something into Hoseok’s ear that Hyungwon couldn’t catch. It seemed to soothe Hoseok a bit, who nodded and remained silent. Kihyun patted his arm. The exchange all seemed very weird and suspicious to Hyungwon, who tried to mind his own business in general, but couldn’t seem to stop looking.

 

Minhyuk called Kihyun into a room to talk about something, and though Hoseok whined, it was a private conversation, so Kihyun walked over to a chair and physically sat Hoseok in it, patting his thigh affectionately.

 

“Wait here,” he said, and Hoseok frowned as if in slight pain, hands gripping the cushion until his knuckles turned white. Kihyun walked off, and Hyungwon didn’t like seeing Hoseok like that; sad. It was foreign to him. He remembered Minhyuk’s story (he tried not to do that often) and felt himself frown. Jooheon caught him, and he met Jooheon’s gaze. Jooheon raised his eyebrows from across the room, a silent conversation. It meant “Do you wanna talk about it?” and Hyungwon shook his head. Jooheon narrowed his eyes, mouthed the word “Later,” and Hyungwon sighed, nodding. 

 

When he turned his attention back to Hoseok, he was having a vision, or rather, a series of visions that couldn’t have lasted more than 3 seconds each. His eyes were glowing and returning to normal so quickly it looked like he was glitching, if that were possible. It sparked concern in Hyungwon, but he didn’t know what to do. He decided no conversation Kihyun was having was more important than what was happening with Hoseok, and he knocked on the door of the room they had entered. The door opened quickly at the sound of panicked knocking and Hyungwon had never seen Minhyuk shut up so fast in his life.

 

“Hoseok is sitting down and he’s having like...a hundred visions a minute. Can you please check on him? You know him better than I do and-” Hyungwon didn’t even have to finish before Kihyun was running into the living room. Hoseok was still having the visions and Kihyun actually looked alarmed, which alarmed Minhyuk and Hyungwon in turn because he was supposed to know all about that stuff. 

 

Kihyun pulled Hoseok up so that he was basically hugging him loosely. He frowned to himself, but his touch seemed to shake Hoseok out of the visions loop. He looked confused, and Hyungwon wondered just how many futures he’d seen, how many out of context clips he had witnessed. Of course he was confused. How could he be sure he was seeing the present?

 

“I shouldn’t have brought him here, I just thought…” Kihyun muttered, and Hyungwon wondered what that meant. As if suddenly trying to calm everyone down, he spoke in a casual tone, said “Sorry guys, we really should be heading out,” and then Minhyuk whispered something into his ear, he nodded, and they left. They didn’t fly, and unlike other days, Kihyun simply had them disappear. 

 

Hyungwon hated how secretive everything was. He turned around and asked Minhyuk what happened. Minhyuk shrugged.

 

“I have a feeling we’ll be finding out sooner than we think,” he said, and Hyungwon wanted to smack his head against the wall, sick of the vague replies.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Hoseok was sitting on Kihyun’s lap. They were new to this process, and the best method of how to do it exactly was pretty unclear, but Kihyun was sitting on centuries of life experience and knowledge, so that was one less thing for Hoseok to be uneasy about. 

 

Whatever the cause, Hoseok’s powers had been acting up. He was full of too much cosmic energy, Kihyun said. The moon was full and they still didn’t fully understand why Hoseok had the powers he did, but the energy seemed to have built up inside of him, bursting suddenly. Hoseok felt full of raw energy, and it was vastly uncomfortable. It felt like the worst anxiety ever, like he was going to shoot out of his skin.

 

“Does anything help?” Kihyun had asked him, and Hoseok was whimpering with pain. “Touching you helps...Just a little, but that’s it,” Kihyun nodded, holding his hand. 

 

“I think when you touch me I syphon off the smallest bit of energy...but if I could take it in somehow, or redirect it…” he said, a theory forming. So Hoseok was sitting on his lap, and Kihyun had his hands on his waist.

 

“Close your eyes,” he said, and Hoseok did so. Kihyun closed his eyes as well, tried to focus on taking the energy into his own body, imagined it turning into one big purple orb of energy. His fingers glowed dimly with amber light, but it wasn’t enough. Hoseok let out a frustrated groan. 

 

“I know, I know,” Kihyun soothed. He directed Hoseok to lean down a bit with his hands and bit into his neck quickly. It didn’t hurt nearly as much as Hoseok expected, though he gasped at the prick. When things were as sharp as Kihyun’s teeth, it didn’t hurt much, felt like the prick of a sewing needle. Whatever Kihyun did, it felt as though some kind of tranquilizer had entered Hoseok’s bloodstream, and it soothed the pain a bit. Hoseok thought to himself distantly that Kihyun would have made a great vampire dentist.

 

“Better?” Kihyun hummed. The wound was already closing. It had felt strange when he’d pulled his teeth out, the area numb. He could feel the weight, the presence of the teeth in his skin, but there was no bite to it, no pain. He nodded lazily and Kihyun seemed to inspect him for a moment. Slowly, his cupped Hoseok’s cheek, and kissed him. 

 

Kissing Kihyun was weird, and not something he expected to do. The visions he had had earlier were so fragmented, but he remembered feeling slow and hazy, feeling safe. He must’ve seen this moment, no matter how vaguely. Kihyun pulled back for a moment.

 

“I think this is it. I think this is the best way to transfer the energy. I’m sorry, but I promise after this you’ll feel a lot better. You’re a very tactile person, you know. It only made sense,” he said, and Hoseok just felt like Kihyun was very smart and beautiful, and he trusted him. Kihyun placed his lips back on Hoseok’s and Hoseok could literally feel the tension leak out of his muscles, the unwelcome energy pouring out of him. Kihyun was a more powerful being than he was, he could handle the energy better. He heard himself moan into the kiss, and it wasn’t supposed to be sexual, though he imagined it seemed that way. He had just been in so much pain since the early morning that he had almost forgotten how nice it felt to feel...normal. If Kihyun heard the moan he ignored it, and Hoseok loved how he knew when to just drop things. When not to bring them up. 

 

It felt like the effects plateaued a bit, and Kihyun’s eyebrows furrowed in frustration. 

 

“Dammit,” he said. “Okay, I think I have to suck the rest out. I’m going to have to feed a little bit,” he said, explaining so Hoseok would not be surprised. “Is that okay?” Hoseok nodded again, trusted him. Kihyun moved slowly towards him, and Hoseok knew then just how right he was to believe in Kihyun. Vampires didn’t approach prey slowly, because the prey might escape. They sunk their teeth in quickly, held them there. They acted with precision. 

 

Kihyun moved forward centimeter by centimeter, giving Hoseok every opportunity to pull away. It stung a bit this time, when Kihyun’s teeth sunk all the way into his neck, but he just gritted his teeth and dealt with it. He winced, and Kihyun stroked his thigh apologetically, soothingly. He felt Kihyun begin to suck, and he felt the energy get pulled out of him again. He’d feel okay again soon, he knew it. As Kihyun fed from him, he felt a strange pride that he could help Kihyun out, and then suddenly the energy built and built. He could tell Kihyun wanted to pull his fangs out, explain what was happening, because his head twitched as if to pull up, hesitated. Yet, doing so would ruin the process, so Hoseok trusted that it was supposed to happen. The energy suddenly all seemed to return, to peak, and then Hoseok felt Kihyun bite down harder, and he came. It was embarrassing, but soon after Kihyun pulled off his neck, licked his lips, and Hoseok felt fine despite his burning face.

 

“Kihyunnie, I’m sorry, I-” Kihyun shook his head.

 

“No, no. I didn’t realize that might happen until it was too late to warn you. Don’t worry. I don’t think it could be helped. There was so much energy inside of you, Hoseok. Powerful energy. No wonder it hurt so much. Do you feel better?” Hoseok was shaky, and still in Kihyun’s lap, and he had just come in his pants in front of him, so he’d had better days, but he certainly did feel better.

 

“Despite the existential dread I’m currently experiencing and how much I want to die of embarrassment? Pretty good. Thank you so much, Kihyunnie!” He said. He knew at that point he should stand up, but his legs felt like jelly. He moved to get up, and they didn’t have any power to do so. Seeing him frown, Kihyun stood up with Hoseok’s legs wrapped his waist. Hoseok whined from embarrassment, and was a little worried he’d get dropped until he remembered that even shorter vampires like Kihyun were deceptively strong. That was another thing that was so human about him, made Kihyun laugh. He judged physical ability on appearance.

 

Kihyun walked over to his bed and leaned over it so Hoseok could relax his legs, remove them from his waist, and then gently laid him down on it, told him to rest.

 

“You’ll be very tired soon, and I need you to stay with me until I can be sure there’s no side effects or anything. This...I’ve never dealt with this before, and I don’t want that to scare you. You know how the universe is, though. Cosmic energy is kind of a big deal. And I’m sorry.” At this, Hoseok tilted his head, confused. “I shouldn’t have brought you to Minhyuk’s in that state. I didn’t know it would get that bad.” 

 

“It’s okay, Kihyunnie. You couldn’t have known. I didn’t even know.”

 

“Hyungwon’s the one who told me, you know. About you having all those visions. I don’t mind him, I don’t think. He just came to get me right away.” Kihyun said, giving Hoseok a smile he couldn’t quite figure out. For some reason, the news made Hoseok kind of happy. He had some sense of deja vu, like maybe during that spell of visions he'd seen something. For one vivid moment, Hyungwon's name brought him the greatest sense of calm, and then it evaporated, his eyebrows furrowing as he tried to get it back to no avail.

 

“He did?” he asked, hoping he didn’t sound too eager, trying not to smile.

 

“Yeah, and he looked pretty worried. What do you think? Does any bad energy come off of him? There’s nothing I can sense.”

 

“No,” Hoseok said, looking down, trying to sort through his thoughts. “I haven’t gotten that from him. He feels really human, too. It’s sad but I can feel it now. The energy that humans give off. He gives off a little bit of that, like there’s a little bit of human trying to claw its way out of a monster’s body.” Kihyun gave Hoseok a soft look.

 

“Why is it sad that you can feel it? Isn’t it advantageous? And Hoseok...I- We hope you don’t still think of us as monsters. You’ve been a vampire long enough, right? Haven’t we given you love? Haven't we shown you how we truly are?” His voice was soft. He knew it was somewhat of a sore topic. 

 

“That’s just it. I don’t think of you as monsters anymore, and I’m one of you, so I’d be a hypocrite to think that anyways. It’s just...that’s how humans see you, when they don’t really understand you yet. It’s sad because it means I’m not one of them anymore. If I was I’d be so used to my own human energy I wouldn’t be able to pinpoint it. And I mean...I'm not an idiot. I'm very aware that I'm a vampire now, but it still hurts, you know? I lived for 24 precious, precious years as a human. I was miserable sometimes...but there were moments that made it all worth it," he said, and Kihyun just listened. "When years pass, Hyungwon might lose that bit of him, but...I really, really hope he doesn’t, Kihyun.” He raised his head and looked Kihyun in his eyes, in his beautiful dark eyes that had seen centuries of magic and change and war. “That’s part of who we are.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> important chapter! there's still a bit of polyamory type stuff going on, but i promise it'll get settled into endgame pairs soon

 

Therewas a day where Hyunwoo came over to Minhyuk’s and the others had to leave. He came alone, without Kihyun or Hoseok, and he and Minhyuk talked for three days. Nobody seemed to know what it was about, not even Kihyun the one day he came over and cooked for them.

 

“I was going to make dinner for myself,” he said, “but I figured this was more efficient.” 

 

Kihyun ate normal food and washed it down with glasses of blood, which was a dietary approach none of them had ever thought to take before, save for Changkyun, who first experienced blood via a glass. It seemed like a stroke of genius, and when Hyungwon and Jooheon saw Kihyun pour the blood into cups they made eye contact and mirrored expressions of shock, as if they’d just won the lottery.

 

“Where’s Hoseok hyung?” Jooheon asked, as Kihyun spooned more food into his bowl, and Kihyun frowns.

 

“Home. He’s been a little down lately.” he said, and it was vague, but nobody wanted to make him say anything else. In reality, Hoseok was still resting up from the energy transfer. It had taken a greater toll on him than he expected, but it was getting better. With the extra energy gone, he was just very lethargic, which was certainly preferable to his previous condition, but he still wasn’t up to leaving. Kihyun made him drink extra blood bags, and he made a face of distaste.

 

“You know,” he said. “Sometimes my human tastebuds still kick in, and man, does this shit taste like metal.”

 

“I know, isn’t it delicious?” Kihyun laughed, and Hoseok frowned at him.

  
  


“We’re defenseless, Hyunwoo,” Minhyuk said. “If the clan wars start again, my boys are doomed. I never taught them how to fight. They never needed to know how. I’m worried. If someone takes me out, what will happen to them?” he said, getting a little too worked up. Hyunwoo shushed him.

 

“Don’t get too worried yet. We don’t even know if that’s what’s going to happen. They can still learn. They’re young. Their brains are like sponges. Kihyun can teach Changkyun some magic, I can teach them a few things...Not all hope is lost. Furthermore, I have a proposition for you. You don’t have to say yes, but I kind of already know you’re going to…”

 

 

* * *

 

 

Hyunwoo nodded to signify he was ready, and they all came forward one by one, anxious but excited. He had Changkyun tilt his neck back first, and he hissed when Hyunwoo’s thick fangs pierced his skin. It burned, burned so bad Changkyun thought he might pass out.

 

“I forgot,” he said, gritting his teeth, “how much this fucking hurts,” and Jooheon, suddenly afraid, looked at Minhyuk.

 

“It hurts? Now I don’t wanna do it. I’m leaving,” he said, turning around on his heel, and Minhyuk grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

 

“Oh, get back here,” he said. “You know it’ll be worth it. Look, it’s almost over already. Look at that mark on Changkyun’s neck. Isn’t it beautiful?” he asked, and it was. It was red where Hyunwoo’s fangs had punctured his skin, but it was already healing so nicely, a sweet little purple crescent forming on his neck. 

 

“Ooh, what’s that?” Hyungwon asked.

 

“Clan mark,” Kihyun answered. “It’s not fully understood how they work. They appear on the skin after the ceremonial bite, and we know that, but we don’t know how shape is determined or what causes them. They’re very sacred though, indicative of the clan bond. We know our bites hurt, so to undergo that pain knowingly just to be intertwined as a clan is no small thing. This ceremony is no joke. I’m a little surprised that you three are so willing to enter. You haven’t known us that long.”

 

“Kihyunnie,” Hoseok said, putting a glass of wine down. “You make it sound like they’re making a mistake. Hyunwoo is a great vampire to be tied with. This is one of the best decisions they’ll ever make.”

 

“You’re  _ also  _ a good vampire to be tied with, Hoseok. You forget this brings us _ all _ together. It’s just that Hyunwoo is the head. Are you nervous?” he asked. “This is the first time you’ll have been bitten by Hyunwoo since your turning,” he said, and Hoseok downed the rest of the wine.

 

“I’m nervous, yes. But more than that I’m ready.”

 

“We’ve basically been an unofficial clan for a while, have we not?” Kihyun asked, twirling his pendant with his fingers. He hadn’t known that Hoseok had seen it coming. In bits and pieces, yes, but he had known this ceremony would take place.

 

“Sort of, but this feels different,” Hoseok said, slumping back in his chair, watching the blood drip off of Hyunwoo’s fangs as he pulled back from a whining Jooheon’s neck. His mark appeared even quicker than Changkyun’s had, a good sign that the ceremony was progressing well. He shivered at the sight, and then Minhyuk sauntered over to Hyunwoo.

 

“Don’t bite me too hard, big boy,” he said breathily, and Hyunwoo laughed like crushed velvet.

 

“No promises,” he said, and the bite took Minhyuk by surprise even as he expected it, digging his fingers into Hyunwoo’s strong arm. He seemed to be holding his breath, and Hyunwoo sunk his fangs in deeper.

 

“It takes longer for those who are born vampires. The body rejects it a little more,” Kihyun explains, and those beside him nod. Minhyuk growls, not on purpose, and then slowly, Hyunwoo pulls his fans out. The mark fades onto his skin, and Minhyuk smiles, feeling it appear.

 

“I always thought if a sub-clan was formed with us seven idiots it’d be me who made it, but this is good too,” he grinned, and Hyunwoo ruffled his hair in a way that was almost fatherly before he gestured for the other three to come over. Kihyun sighed and walked up first. Hyunwoo bit in hard and Kihyun looked at the ceiling, seemingly unaffected. Jooheon gawked and Kihyun laughed breathily.

 

“I’ve had way worse, kid,” he said, and sat still while Hyunwoo pushed his teeth in one final time before pulling up. There was a bit of a bruise forming around the mark, but Kihyun exhaled happily. 

 

“It’s an honor, Hyunwoo,” he said, and then Hyungwon stood beside him.

 

“I haven’t known you for long,” Hyungwon said, and both Minhyuk and Hyunwoo tensed, unsure of what he would say next, if he would bail on them mid ceremony. 

 

“However,” he said. “I trust you with my eternal soul, my wellbeing and safety. I hand over my own services as well, meager as they might be. I’ll respect you as my leader, Hyunwoo hyung.” Hyunwoo smiled and so did Minhyuk, visibly relaxing. Hoseok raised his eyebrows, surprised at the pledge of loyalty, happy that others were giving Hyunwoo the respect he deserved. Hyunwoo tried to bite into Hyungwon gently, and it didn’t take as long for him, but Hyungwon still hissed, scrunched his face up in pain, little whimpers coming out. It was all okay as long as it didn’t interrupt the bite itself, but Minhyuk held Hyungwon’s arms down just in case.

 

“You’re doing great, Hyungwonnie.” he said, and then Hyunwoo lifted his mouth. 

 

“Welcome aboard,” he said, and Hyungwon smiled at him even as his neck seared with pain. 

 

“Oh, Hyungwon” Minhyuk cooed. “Look how pretty your mark came out. Does anyone have a mirror? Oh, shit.” he said. “Nevermind. Take my word for it,”

 

“Minhyuk-ah,” Kihyun laughed. “You’ve been a vampire your entire life. How did you forget that?”

 

“I know, it’s just- I know what humans use them for, and I forgot- Leave me alone, all my friends were human once.” he said, and Kihyun laughed harder, until Hyunwoo motioned for Hoseok to come over.

 

“Don’t worry,” Hyunwoo said. “You’ve been through this before,” and Hoseok nodded, a bit tense, while Kihyun watched, frowning just a bit, concerned. Hyunwoo’s teeth punctured the skin in a way that made an audible rip, and Jooheon flinched. Little trails of blood slid down Hoseok’s skin from where the bite was, and Minhyuk licked his lips subconsciously, eyes flashing red and back to black again, while Hoseok’s breathing seemed unusually labored, lips clamped tightly together.

 

“Hoseok?” Kihyun called, and Hoseok’s eyes remained shut tight. Kihyun stood up. “Hoseok?” he called again, louder this time, and Hoseok’s eyes opened for a moment before rolling back into his head and shutting again, his body slumping. 

 

“Is he okay?” Changkyun asked, worried.

 

“He fainted,” Minhyuk said. “It happens once in awhile, but it shouldn’t affect the overall ceremony.” Hyunwoo pulled his teeth out and examined Hoseok briefly, eyebrows furrowed, before carrying him over to the couch and laying him down. His mark was a shade darker, a deeper purple because after all, Hyunwoo had been the one to turn him. His body was more familiar with him now. Hyunwoo ran his fingers across it, felt the hot skin. Minhyuk stood up and leaned over Hoseok, licking the streaks of blood off his neck.

 

“Minhyuk,” Kihyun scolded, but Hyunwoo put up a hand to stop him.

 

“It’s fine, Kihyun. He’s just cleaning up another member of his clan.” he said, and Kihyun relaxed.

 

The sight of Minhyuk’s tongue on Hoseok’s neck made heat curl in Hyungwon’s belly, the atmosphere of the room suddenly a little suffocating. He felt closer to everyone in the room in a strange way, could feel an affection for them inside of him that grew with every passing moment. Then Minhyuk pulled up from Hoseok’s neck, as if startled.

 

“Hyung!” he said. “We almost forgot about the final bite. Hoseok needs to be up for that.”

 

“It can wait a little. He’ll be up soon. His body was just a little shocked.” he said, calm as ever, and then noticed Hyungwon’s raised eyebrow.

 

“All of you need to bite me at the same time for the ceremony to be officially over.” he explained, and Hyungwon’s eyes got bigger. 

 

“Is there a certain way to do it? Like, what if I do it wrong?”

 

“It’s pure instinct. If you’re thinking about it at all, it’s wrong. You just bite, I promise.”

 

Cutting the awkward silence, Changkyun giggled. “You know, this reminds me of a blood drive at my high school. I was donating, and I guess they took a little too much. I was so dizzy when I stood up, and then everything went black. When I woke up the nurse practically poured orange juice down my throat,”

 

“What a good human you were, Changkyunnie,” Minhyuk cooed, sitting beside Hoseok. “To think that one of us could have been drinking your sweet little blood warms my heart,”

 

“Oh,” Jooheon said, scrunching up his nose. “That’s weird,” he said, and Minhyuk laughed. Hoseok roused next to him. Minhyuk leaned down to check on his neck, which dribbled a few droplets of blood. He licked them up and Hoseok groaned. At the sound, Minhyuk raised his head and made eye contact with Hoseok, before kissing him on the mouth. Hoseok kissed back, hungry and a little out of it, and Changkyun’s eyebrows raised considerably, Jooheon’s eyes wide and looking back and forth between the couple making out and Hyunwoo, trying to see if he was the only one weirded out. Hyunwoo chuckled, and for a brief moment the sound irritated Hyungwon, who for some reason didn’t find them kissing very funny, and in fact felt a vaguely unhappy feeling when he looked at them. 

 

“Your faces are amazing,” he said. “It’s kind of a side effect of the whole clan bonding thing. They can’t really help it. Hey, Minhyuk,” he said, tapping Minhyuk on the shoulder, who looked up breathlessly, wiping his mouth.

 

“Hm?” he said, sounding a little dreamy and needy.

 

“We need to let Hoseok up for the group bite, if you don’t mind,”

 

“Oh, oh yeah” Minhyuk said, hastily getting up and extending a hand to Hoseok, who looked a little embarrassed. 

 

“You ready?” he asked Hoseok, who nodded, and they all walked over to Hyunwoo.

 

“Does it matter where I bite?” Changkyun asked. He had only really ever bitten blood bags and human food, so he was confused. 

 

“Just anywhere on the top half of my body, preferable not my face. I recommend my sides, neck, and shoulders,” he said, and they spread out, heads hovering over his body like a family at some weird sort of picnic. “Now,” he said, and they all sunk their fangs in at once. Changkyun’s bite was strangely more painful, because his crooked fang cut through the skin at a different angle. Hyunwoo pursed his lips but didn’t let out any sounds, acutely aware of the 12 fangs inside his skin, and already feeling protective over his soon-to-be clan. He began to get a bit dizzy, knowing this would happen but too happy that the ceremony was going well to care. He felt two of them sink their fangs in deeper, probably Minhyuk and Kihyun, who would once again have a harder time getting their marks to show up. Changkyun and Jooheon pulled up with huge grins, high fiving, the smack of their hands bringing Hyunwoo back to reality a bit, smiling gently. 

 

Gradually, they rose, admiring their marks, with Hoseok rising last. Hyunwoo lifted himself up and put his shirt back on. He kept a straight face for a moment on purpose, then turned to face the group of boys.

 

“We’re a clan now, guys. Can you believe it?” he said, and a chorus of cheers erupted from them. He waited a moment, letting them celebrate, and then grew serious. “If any of you are ever in danger, I’ll feel it inside of me, and I will come immediately. None of you will ever get hurt,” Hyunwoo said, eyes swirling into different colors, a dark green, a hazel, a scarlet, and back to black, and they all nodded humbly. “In many ways, you belong to me now. When you take care of yourselves, you are taking care of what is rightfully mine. That, as well as coming to my aid in the event of an emergency, is your responsibility. Don’t disappoint me,” he said, and Hyungwon shivered, feeling the weight of those words in his chest, every part of him wanting to do right by his new leader, by his entire clan. He felt Changkyun’s hand on his shoulder and trembled, suddenly wanting so badly to kiss him. Hyunwoo smiled at him.

 

“You’re going to want to touch each other in some platonic ways and some not so platonic ways for a little while, while your bodies get used to the bonding. There’s nothing bad that will come of any of it, so don’t lose your minds trying to abstain, but be kind and gentle to each other. I’m going to go fill out some boring paperwork to give to the guild. They hate not knowing about new clans. Hoseok,” he said, catching sight of him trying to stand up, getting ready to leave with him. “Stay with your fellow clan members and socialize a bit. That’s an order,” he said, and waved goodbye before disappearing. Hoseok looked a little disappointed but sat back down.

 

Minhyuk took this opportunity to kiss Hoseok onto the ground, who struggled for a second before accepting the heated kiss, hands on Minhyuk’s back. Kihyun snorted.

 

“Amateurs,” he said, but then Changkyun was crawling towards him and putting his head in his lap, and feeling that inexplicable warmth and fondness, all of Kihyun’s harsh edges rounded out as he began to card his fingers through Changkyun’s soft hair. Hyungwon couldn’t shake his desire to kiss Changkyun, so he did it, leaning down close to Kihyun’s thigh as he did so, gently pressing their lips together, nothing like the way Minhyuk was messily kissing Hoseok, like he’d die if he didn’t crash their lips together. Changkyun reciprocated quietly, calmly, and Kihyun watched them both, thinking to himself that they were so pretty, and they all belonged to each other.

 

Jooheon itched with the desire to be touched suddenly, and he crawled over to where Minhyuk was, tilting his chin up and kissing him, even as Minhyuk was still on top of Hoseok. Hoseok didn’t seem mad or put out by it at all, and instead stroked Jooheon’s back with a strong and loving hand, eyelids heavy. 

 

When Jooheon pulled away from the kiss, seeming to come to his senses, he glanced at Hyungwon, who had stopped kissing Changkyun. He looked unhappy somehow, the corners of his eyes pulling down. He wasn’t sure if he was imagining it, or if living with Hyungwon had just made him really good at reading his face, if the newly formed bond between all of them meant he could pick up on moods better.

 

Moments later, when the haze that had overtaken them all had passed, Hyungwon sat up.

 

“That was weird,” he said, and Minhyuk laughed, then looked down at Hoseok strangely when he felt his body go tense beneath him, and then Hoseok’s eyes were amber and glowing, mouth in a tight line.

 

“It’s a vision,” Minhyuk whispered, and Kihyun sat up straight so he could see better over Changkyun.

 

“Those have been troubling him lately,” he said gently. The amber light died down until Hoseok’s eyes returned to normal, and he looked unhappy.

 

“Hyunwoo’s mother doesn’t approve of us,” he said, and Kihyun snorted.

 

“Hyunwoo’s mother has never liked any of us, but that doesn’t stop Hyunwoo from being with us. She might not like turned vampires, but she’s stuck in her ways. It’s not like we can go back in time now anyways,” he said. “We’re already a clan,” Minhyuk stared at him until Kihyun got frustrated.

 

“What?” he said.

 

“We kinda can. Go back in time that is.” Kihyun opened his mouth and Minhyuk put up his hands in defeat.

 

“I don’t want to or anything! I’m just saying. We could.”

 

“I hate knowing that we make Hyunwoo’s life more difficult.” Hoseok sighed. “Minhyuk, please kiss me some more,” he said, wanting a distraction, and Minhyuk smiled, flashing his fangs. 

 

“Anything you want, baby.” he said, and it made Hyungwon’s stomach turn again with a very human emotion, perhaps the most human emotion there was; jealousy. 

 

Jooheon took another look at Hyungwon and knew in his heart that he was unhappy, and he decided he’d ask later, away from everyone else. He had a theory, but he couldn’t be certain, and Hyungwon always got hurt a little easier than people thought he did.

 

A few moments later everyone had fallen into a stranger slumber, but Hyungwon found himself restless. He laid there for a moment, listening to the sounds of them breathing, Jooheon’s familiar snoring, just trapped in a weird feeling. As though time were suspended and yet passing so quickly at once. He was half awake and half asleep, mouth open and eyes unfocused. He looked at Kihyun to see if he was fucking with the passage of time somehow, but he was asleep next to Changkyun. He heard a sound like knocking but it didn’t seem like Hyunwoo. It was an inexplicable way of knowing. He couldn’t feel energies, but he just knew it wasn’t Hyunwoo, maybe because he was the clan leader now. Maybe because Hyungwon had tasted his skin. He rose from the ground slowly and hesitantly, feeling anxiety beginning to claw at him. He nudged Minhyuk, but he didn’t even stir no matter how much Hyungwon shook him. Hyungwon had no idea how to fight.

 

The sound was different now, not a knocking but a sound like heavy footsteps, like a stranger. Hyungwon was breathing a little faster, some part of him still hoping it could be Hyunwoo somehow even though he knew it wasn’t. He didn’t know how he could keep them all safe. They looked so precious and lovely sleeping, too. The warmth of his affection could have started a fire, the sight of his friends- his  _ clan  _ asleep so peacefully. He couldn’t let anything happen to them. He’d never felt protectiveness like this before.

 

The sound was so close, just outside the door, and Hyunwon felt his fangs descend, sharper, bigger. His eyes were purple. There was always the chance that it’d work.

 

Hyungwon didn’t waste time, pinned the body that entered against the wall as soon as it entered with strength that was still foreign to him. As a human he had been weak, so he always forgot it was different as a vampire. He had the vampire’s wrists pinned against the wall, and he was nothing like Hyunwoo. He wasn’t as strong or as tall and he was definitely an enemy. He had probably assumed they’d all be asleep and helpless. He stared at Hyungwon angrily but couldn’t seem to overpower him, all of Hyungwon’s adrenaline on overdrive, his hands almost crushing the vampire’s wrists.

 

“What brings you here?” Hyungwon said, tone vicious, half a hiss, and the vampire struggled some more.

 

“Clan ceremonies are supposed to put you to sleep. What the fuck is wrong with you? You shouldn’t be awake, this makes no  _ sense.” _ The vampire growled. Hyungwon hissed and it was so territorial and unlike him he almost gave himself goosebumps.

 

“Get the fuck out of here.” he said, and the vampire flinched, only now beginning to worry about his life. Hyungwon shut his eyes and opened them, the purple surging. He looked right into the vampire’s eyes.

 

“What clan are you?” he asked, and his voice was like chimes, like a sweet song from centuries ago, like silk.

 

“Bae.” The vampire said, unable to rip his gaze away, and this was the confirmation Hyungwon had needed, that his powers worked on vampires too.

 

“You  _ bastards,”  _ he growled. “Leave my clan alone.” He said, and then, just on a whim, he continued. “Go back to your clan and kill the leader, then kill yourself,” he whispered. “Forget my clan ever existed,” He was like a snake now, one that tempted. “You never saw any of us. You don’t know this address, why you came here. You’ll never come here again.” he said, tone so final, so devoid of any warmth. The vampire nodded hazily, slow like in a dream. His eyes were heavy lidded. Hyungwon let his wrists go, watching carefully for any signs of rebellion. His own will to protect his clan scared him. He could feel himself prepare to launch at the vampire, sink his teeth right into the vampire’s neck and rip them right out,  _ kill  _ him. He knew then what Minhyuk meant, about how it was hard for Hoseok to fight like this, how it was hard for humans to fight like this.

 

Yet the vampire simply stood there, limp and awaiting instruction, making no move to get away.

 

“Get the fuck out of here,” Hyungwon said, and the vampire nodded, disappeared. Hyungwon couldn’t relax after even when the presence was gone. He sank to his knees, and then sat down, all very clumsily. The panic hit him a bit too late, the stress about the danger that he had narrowly avoided. He couldn’t get his fangs to retract, and they couldn’t ever retract completely, but there was a certain length that indicated a vampire had just engaged in some kind of battle or mystical activity, and he wasn’t quite ready to tell the members what happened yet. He was just so glad they were okay. He leaned down and pecked them all on the forehead as lightly as he could, then laid down on the ground to feign sleep. They’d be waking up soon, and it’d be suspicious if he was just sitting up with his fangs sticking out. Eventually the safe feeling of his clan around him lulled him to sleep, relaxed him enough for his fangs to return to normal. 

 

When they woke up, their smiles were gentle and happy. Hyungwon woke up right away when he heard them stir, which was unusual because Hyungwon slept like the dead on any other day. Feeling an agitated energy in the room, Hoseok looked around with eyes puffy from sleep before stopping on Hyungwon. He made eye contact with him and frowned, but then Kihyun was saying they should all get home, and they all hugged each other and said their farewells. Kihyun had to bring Changkyun and Hoseok to their homes, Hyungwon and Jooheon were heading home, and Minhyuk was already in his own house. Normally Hyunwoo escorted Hoseok, and maybe Hoseok would be okay going by himself, but going with Kihyun quelled the anxiety settling in his stomach. Kihyun’s too, although he’d never admit it. 

  
_ Yes,  _ Hyungwon thought.  _ Please take them home safely and guard them. _ The next time he saw Hyunwoo, he made a vow to tell him.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> they finally got a first win omg??? when i tell you i watched with my hands over my face when the numbers came up on that livestream..i'm more proud and happy than words can express! 
> 
> i hope you enjoy this chapter!

Hyungwon hung up his coat on the rack when he and Jooheon walked into their apartment. He seemed tired in a different way, and truthfully the ceremony had made them all tired. Jooheon kept rubbing his clan mark subconsciously. The skin felt just as soft underneath his fingers as it always had, but still different somehow. When he saw Hyungwon walking towards his room, presumably to sleep, he called him back.

 

“Hm?” Hyungwon said, rubbing his eyes, and Jooheon patted the couch beside him.

 

“Nuh uh,” Jooheon said. “You can’t escape me that easily.”

 

“What?” Hyungwon asked, although he sat down anyway. “What’s this about?” Jooheon sat with his hands folded for a second, thinking. He decided to just be straightforward. Hyungwon liked that, when people didn’t beat around the bush.

“Do you like Minhyuk hyung? Like as more than a friend? I know you guys kiss sometimes, when he brings you here, and I didn’t think anything of it, but you didn’t seem very happy when he was kissing Hoseok, or me. I’m sorry, by the way. I wasn’t thinking clearly.” Hyungwon’s eyebrows shot up briefly before he composed himself. He hadn’t been aware of his own expressions, so he had absolutely no idea others had, and he had kissed Changkyun, he realized belatedly. They had all been out of it for a bit.

 

“No, no. Don’t apologize. It’s not- That’s not it. It’s okay, really. The ceremony messed with all of our heads. I was probably just spacing out or something. I wasn’t upset.” Jooheon squinted, clearly suspicious. For just one moment, Hyungwon wished Jooheon didn’t know him so well.

 

“You space out often enough for me to know what that looks like. That wasn’t it. You looked sad, hyung. Are you lying to me?”

 

“No,” he said, a little exasperated by now, maybe a little touchy. He regretted his tone as soon as he was done saying it, but Jooheon didn’t look very hurt, held his glare. Hyungwon took a deep breath.

 

“I don’t like Minhyuk like that,” he said. “He’s...We...I really like him as a friend, as my - Pretend I’m not saying this - savior? Kind of. I really respect him and admire him and I’m really, really glad I know him. I owe him a lot. But I don’t like Minhyuk in that way. I know we kiss sometimes but it’s just different, it’s not supposed to be like that. It’s hard to explain. I don’t know. Maybe it doesn’t even make sense, but that’s how it is.” Jooheon sat up, processing.

 

“Then I believe you. But there’s still something bothering you, Chae Hyungwon. I’m gonna find out what it is. We live together and I’ve known you for years. Eventually, I’ll figure it out. But also? I shouldn’t have to do that really, and you shouldn’t do that to yourself. Keeping stuff like that in isn’t good for you, and now that you and I are in the same clan, well, we’re just closer. So once in a while let me know what’s bothering you, okay? Let me be that kind of dongsaeng for you. One that listens to your problems. I don’t just live with you because it’s cheaper that way, hyung. I actually like you as a person, and I want you to be happy.” Jooheon said, and his maturity was nearly startling. Hyungwon could forget sometimes, that bright and energetic Jooheon had a layer of maturity to him, that sometimes he was more like a hyung. That’s why everyone loved him so goddamn much, from grandmothers to children.

 

“I want you to be happy too, Jooheonie,” he said, and he almost, _almost,_ got choked up, but he didn’t. He cleared his throat in an act of defiance. “You’re already that kind of dongsaeng for me, but if I feel like I need advice on something or to vent, I’ll try to talk to you more. I promise,” he said, and Jooheon nodded, satisfied. He still had that calculating look on his face, but he stood up to hug Hyungwon firmly.

 

“Okay, hyung,” he said, gentler now. “Get some sleep. We had a long day.”

  


As it turned out, it was a very good thing that Hyungwon had taken note of the unspoken rule that the nearest person had to catch Hoseok when a vision struck, because with absolutely no warning and everyone else having migrated from the living room to the kitchen for some reason, Hoseok eyes glowed that familiar amber that looked so pretty, now that Hyungwon was closer, and he actually fell back before Hyungwon caught him.

 

The vision seemed to last for a long time, so Hyungwon actually lifted him up and sat him down on the couch, sitting beside him, having a feeling like it was best to maintain bodily contact, like it was somewhat conducive to the whole vision process. He laughed to himself when he thought about how much of a struggle it would have been pre-turning for him to lift Hoseok up, how his noodle arms would have buckled under his weight.

 

He was holding both of Hoseok’s hands, even though it wasn’t the most comfortable sitting position. It felt too important to let go, and honestly, Hoseok’s hands were nice in his, sized perfectly and pretty just like the rest of him. Just as he thought this, the amber glow faded away.

 

“Hyung?” he asked gently, as if rousing him from sleep. “Are you okay?” he asked cautiously, and Hoseok still looked out of it. Granted, it had been a fairly long vision, and it probably was jarring to suddenly come back to the present. Tiredly, he smiled at Hyungwon.

 

“I’m great,” he said, and Hyungwon had a feeling the vision had been of something good, like waking up after a wonderful dream. “How are you?” he asked, and the question caught Hyungwon off guard.

 

“I’m...good actually. Hoping it stays that way.” Hoseok’s face lit up.

 

“Hoping is good! The universe appreciates that. Closed mouths don’t get fed.” He was talking about the universe as if it was a friend of his, but Hyungwon was getting concerningly used to things like this from him, so he just listened.

 

“So you hope for things and the universe knows about it?”

 

“Of course! She knows everything. You put out a wish, a hope, a dream into the universe and she notices right away. She can’t do all the work of course, she’s very busy. You have to help make things happen, too! But she rewards people who want and work for their dreams to come true. She loves passion.”

 

“Does she tell you this herself?” Hoseok hummed at that, thinking.

 

“It’s not like talking. It’s like a feeling. I just know these things, like she imparts the knowledge on me without ever speaking. I have never heard her voice.”

 

“This connection you have- Is that why you have visions?”

 

“I...I think so. I feel like we have this bond, so she just blesses me with these special visions. Not to sound like a human, but it’s like a movie trailer I get to see before anyone else, or something like that,” Hyungwon laughed at the comparison, finding it so familiar.

 

“That’s a good way to describe it. Ever see anything good?” he asked, and Hoseok gave him a kind of funny smile, just so full of warmth. It made his heart beat faster, and he hoped he wasn’t staring too long. Hyungwon realized when Hoseok smiled, his cheeks were so soft and full. He faught the urge to pinch them.

 

“Yeah,” Hoseok said, still looking at Hyungwon like that, like he was worth a thousand bucks. “Sometimes,” He took Hyungwon’s hand in his and stood up. “Let’s see what the others are up to in that kitchen. If Hyunwoo is cooking there might be an explosion on our hands. One time, Kihyunnie was trying to teach Hyunwoo how to cook something, and instead of oil he used vinegar. Vinegar! Kihyun almost threw a fit. It was a disaster, and Hyunwoo just kept saying ‘Nope, I used oil alright,” even though the vinegar was right next to him.” He was laughing at the memory, clearly replaying it in his mind, and Hyungwon was laughing hard too even though he hadn’t seen it happen. He could imagine it clearly enough. They were feeding off of each other’s laughs, laughing louder and louder in the living room. Hyungwon’s stomach hurt.

 

“Kihyun went ‘Damn you, Son Hyunwoo! I should turn back time before I even met you!’ All that because he fucked up some eggrolls. I laughed so hard I sobbed. Kihyun turned me into a rabbit for like ten minutes.”

 

“He what?” Hyungwon asked incredulously through his laughter. It was such a random sentence, and he had added it in last minute as if it was normal. “He’s not a magician,”

 

“I don’t know how he did it either, but he’s mysterious like that. I was hopping around the kitchen.” The absurd imagery of Hoseok jumping around a kitchen in rabbit form did nothing to stop Hyungwon’s laughter and he fell on the floor.

 

“Why a rabbit?” he wheezed.

 

“He said I looked like one so it was an easy decision,” Hoseok said, and then laughed hard at Hyungwon’s pained expression. “Cute,” he said affectionately, and Kihyun stormed into the living room. They had never even made it into the kitchen. Hoseok’s story ruined everything,

 

“What’s this laughter all about?” he said. “Minhyuk almost dropped an egg on Jooheon’s head because Hoseok’s loud ass laugh startled him. I know that laugh anywhere.” He looked around the room at Hyungwon and Hoseok on the ground holding their stomachs and smiled. “Idiots,” he said. “What are you laughing at?”

 

“Hop hop” Hyungwon said intelligently, and Kihyun scrunched up in his face in confusion.

 

“Kitchen,” Hoseok supplied, and Kihyun snapped his fingers.

 

“When I turned you into a rabbit! You watch it, Chae Hyungwon. Keep laughing and I’ll turn you into a frog, and I decide these things based on appearance.” Hoseok wiped his tears and gathered the strength to stand up, while Hyungwon seemed hopelessly stuck on the floor. Minhyuk came in with a tray of cinnamon rolls and sighed fondly at Hyungwon.

 

“When he starts laughing he can’t stop. This kid…” he said, but he was smiling too.

 

“An eternity of this?” Kihyun asked, to himself or to the universe, nobody could be certain. Minhyuk bumped him with his elbow, careful not to drop the cinnamon rolls.

 

“Sounds pretty good to me,” he said, and then he set the cinnamon rolls on the table.

 

“Hyungwon-ah, we’re going to eat all of these without you if you don’t get up.” he said, and Hyungwon coughed, trying to relax, stood up weakly. Every so often he’d burst into giggles and then they’d stop again, until eventually he was calm once more.

 

For a while it was good, everything sweet like that. Lots of being around everyone, no insecurity when they weren’t. Hyungwon told his mom about it, who tried her best to understand.

 

“That’s great, Hyungwon-ah!” she said. “I’m so glad you have such good friends." And yeah, they were his friends, but he couldn't help but feel the word didn't do their relationship justice. "Do you think you’ll going back to university soon?” she asked, voice a bit more cautious. Hyungwon covered the phone so she wouldn’t hear his sigh and then put it back up to his face. She always hoped he’d try to be as human as possible again, that he’d try to finish out his degree at least.

 

“I think so. I mean, the current school year isn’t over at all, so there’s gonna be a while before I could go, but that’s the plan.” he said, and the way his mother sighed in relief hurt his feelings a little bit, like she couldn’t wait to pretend he wasn’t a vampire anymore, to just make small talk about his classes.

 

“How lovely! Have you talked to your clan about it at all?” she asked, and Hyungwon frowned. He hadn’t even thought about that, that it might be an issue. Changkyun and Jooheon had been forced to take a leave from university too, maybe if they all braved it together…

 

“Of course,” he said, feigning confidence. “It’s fine. They think it’s a good idea,” he said, and his mother laughed a delighted laugh.

 

“I love you, Hyungwon-ah. Stay warm!” she said, and Hyungwon couldn’t feel the resentment for too long, not at her motherly tone. He always got cold easily.

 

“Yes, mom..” he singsonged, and then hung up the phone.

 

The next day at Minhyuk’s house, where they had taken to hanging out, Hoseok seemed stressed out, but nobody seemed to pick up on it except for Hyungwon. Finally, Hyungwon just asked him straight up if he was upset, and everyone’s attention was on them.

 

“Um, yeah actually,” Hoseok said. “Are you- Are you leaving us?” he asked, and the question seemed to incite some sort of panic amongst everyone in the room, though Hyunwoo quickly hushed them. Hyungwon felt a warmth in his heart then, though he couldn’t focus on it for long. He hadn’t realized the idea of him leaving would upset everyone so much, but he was also confused.

 

“Chae Hyungwon, if you leave this clan so quickly after joining it, I swear to all the powers of the universe I will-” Kihyun began, but Minhyuk clapped a hand over his mouth before he could finish.

 

“What? No!” Hyungwon said. “Why would you think that?” Hoseok pulled his knees into his chest.

 

“I had a vision of you getting on a bus, saying goodbye. You had a bag of stuff with you, like you were going somewhere for a while.”

 

“To be fair, that’s in the future, so I have no way of knowing the context of what you’re talking about.”

 

“And you were talking to your mom, she asked if you had discussed ‘it’ with us. What’s ‘it’?” He asked, and damn, no privacy in those visions.

 

“My mom wants to know if I’m going back to college. I’ve been on leave for like two years now, going on three. At some point I have to finish my degree, so I said I’d go back next school year. Now that I know you saw that, I’d assume the me getting on a bus is me going to the school building with my backpack, but that’s so far off. Jesus. Just how far into the future can you see?”

 

“I don’t know. It’s different every time,” he said, but he seemed content with Hyungwon’s answer.

 

“I’d never leave you guys…” Hyungwon said, suddenly feeling hurt at the idea of it. “I love you all too much,” he said, and then froze. They hadn’t said that to each other yet. It was heavily implied through actions, through physical affection and kind gestures, but now the words were out there, and Hyungwon had said them first. Minhyuk’s smile was so big and blinding, Hyungwon had to look away.

 

“You love us?” Changkyun said, smiling just as big, but his tone was teasing.

 

“Well, yeah,” Hyungwon tried to backtrack. “Isn’t that good? I mean our souls are kind of tied together in a huge knot for all of eternity? I think that’s a given right? That I love who I’m bonded with.”

 

Hyunwoo smiled his big fatherly smile and absolutely _crushed_ Hyungwon in a hug. Kihyun, pretending he had not almost cursed Hyungwon out in front of everybody, smiled and said “I knew he was a good one. When he came and got me because Hoseok’s powers were going wild, I knew. He dared to interrupt me? And everyone knows how much I hate that.” he said.

 

“Of course,” Hyungwon said, with more resolve than he intended, tone a bit too serious. Hoseok had picked up on it, by the way he shifted. “I was...I was worried, you know?”

 

“Hyunwoo hyung,” Hyungwon said. “I’ve been thinking about something. That first day...the day where we bonded, and then you had to go do some paperwork, a vampire showed up. Everyone was asleep, and I heard him...But I always wondered why you didn’t know. Isn’t that what a bonding ceremony does? You should’ve known right? That we were in danger?” Hyunwoo smiled.

 

“I would have known, if anyone was ever actually in any danger.” he said. “I’m not the only capable vampire in our clan, Hyungwon. Far from it. What did you do when you heard him?” Hyungwon blinked.

 

“I...kind of pinned him against the wall and hypnotized him into leaving.” Hyunwoo smirked.

 

“Oh yeah? Did you by any chance tell him to take down his clan leader? The Bae clan fell apart recently after their leader’s death and it seems just a little bit like your doing.” Hyungwon’s eyes widened. He hadn’t know that the vampire had gone through with it.

 

“I…”

 

“I never knew that the clan was in danger because it wasn’t, because you were there. I didn’t need to go save you guys because you saved them instead. You protected your clan, Hyungwon. That’s amazing. You have that kind of power inside you.” Hyunwoo patted his arm. Hyungwon stared at the floor, processing it. His chest felt swollen with pride, but it was a new idea, him being a protector, him being capable of such a thing. He could feel Hoseok looking at him as though seeing a new side of him.

 

“Oh! Oh!” Changkyun said, suddenly remembering something and standing up. “Kihyun hyung taught me this! Okay, watch out,” he said, excited, and Minhyuk smiled. Changkyun stared at a flower, focusing, and then snapped his fingers. At once, the flower burst into flame, a small and contained one, and turned black and dry. He smiled, satisfied with himself as the fire fizzled out. Jooheon stared at him with his mouth open, and Kihyun’s smile looked proud and affectionate. Minhyuk tackled him to the ground and ruffled his hair.

 

“Changkyunnie! Our little magical being,” he cooed.

 

"He's a natural," Kihyun said, with the gentle tone of a parent. 

 

"How did you do that?" Jooheon asked, incredulous. 

  
“Kihyun hyung said you just have to focus on something, and _want_ it. Just want it with everything you have.” Hoseok watched, cheek smushed into his palm, looking a little tired and fond. In the warm glow of the room, Hyungwon found himself looking at Hoseok, remembering what he had said about the universe, that if you made your desires known, and worked towards them, the universe would listen. In that moment he wanted Hoseok, and more than anything he wanted Hoseok to be happy.


End file.
